London: Former UK prime minister Boris Johnson, in a BBC documentary, has made a startling statement. When he travelled to Ukraine in February 2022 amid worries of a Russian invasion, he attempted to use his trip to warn Russia that an attack would be devastating. Vladimir Putin, the president of Russia, reportedly worried about NATO encroaching on his borders.
The revelation came in a three-part documentary for the BBC called ‘Putin v the West’.
In a phone call with Johnson, Putin, before the Russian invasion of Ukraine, said he could send a missile to hit Britain ‘within a minute’, the former UK prime minister said.
The documentary, which is scheduled to be broadcast on Monday, reveals the details of the long phone conversation that took place between the two leaders and also examines Putin’s interactions with world leaders.
The documentary also reveals that the UK PM warned Putin against invading Ukraine, which he said, would lead to Western sanctions and more NATO troops on Russia’s borders. Johnson also tried to deter Russian military action by telling Putin that Ukraine would not join NATO “for the foreseeable future”.
However, Putin was not convinced, claimed Johnson who further said, “He ( Russian leader) threatened me at one point, and said, ‘Boris, I don’t want to hurt you but, with a missile, it would only take a minute’ or something like that.”
Former UK Pm also revealed that he and other Western leaders had been hurrying to Kyiv to show support for Ukraine and try to prevent a Russian attack. Johnson, during those days, emerged as one of the most impassioned Western backers of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. Nine days later, on 11 February, Defence Secretary Ben Wallace flew to Moscow to meet his Russian counterpart, Sergei Shoigu.
Less than a fortnight later, as Russian tanks rolled over the border on 24 February, the UK PM received a phone call in the middle of the night from President Zelensky, the documentary says. “Zelensky’s very, very calm,” Johnson recalled. “But, he tells me, you know, they’re attacking everywhere,” he said. Johnson also offered to help move the Ukraine President to safety, however, he refused to leave his country.
Less than a fortnight later, as Russian tanks rolled over the border on 24 February, the UK PM received a phone call in the middle of the night from President Zelensky, the documentary says. “Zelensky’s very, very calm,” Johnson recalled. “But, he tells me, you know, they’re attacking everywhere,” he said. Johnson also offered to help move the Ukraine President to safety, however, he refused to leave his country.
