Posted on Jan 30, 2023
Ukraine: Boris Johnson says Putin threatened him with missile strike
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Boris Johnson has said Vladimir Putin threatened him with a missile strike in an "extraordinary" phone call in the run-up to Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
The then-prime minister said Mr Putin told him it "would only take a minute".
Mr Johnson said the comment was made after he warned the war would be an "utter catastrophe".
The claim is made in a BBC documentary on Mr Putin's interactions with world leaders over the years. The Kremlin spokesman said it was a "lie".
Mr Johnson warned Mr Putin that invading Ukraine would lead to Western sanctions and more Nato troops on Russia's borders.
He also tried to deter Russian military action by telling Mr Putin that Ukraine would not join Nato "for the foreseeable future".
But Mr Johnson said: "He threatened me at one point, and he said, 'Boris, I don't want to hurt you but, with a missile, it would only take a minute' or something like that. Jolly.
"But I think from the very relaxed tone that he was taking, the sort of air of detachment that he seemed to have, he was just playing along with my attempts to get him to negotiate."
President Putin had been "very familiar" during the "most extraordinary call", Mr Johnson said.
The then-prime minister said Mr Putin told him it "would only take a minute".
Mr Johnson said the comment was made after he warned the war would be an "utter catastrophe".
The claim is made in a BBC documentary on Mr Putin's interactions with world leaders over the years. The Kremlin spokesman said it was a "lie".
Mr Johnson warned Mr Putin that invading Ukraine would lead to Western sanctions and more Nato troops on Russia's borders.
He also tried to deter Russian military action by telling Mr Putin that Ukraine would not join Nato "for the foreseeable future".
But Mr Johnson said: "He threatened me at one point, and he said, 'Boris, I don't want to hurt you but, with a missile, it would only take a minute' or something like that. Jolly.
"But I think from the very relaxed tone that he was taking, the sort of air of detachment that he seemed to have, he was just playing along with my attempts to get him to negotiate."
President Putin had been "very familiar" during the "most extraordinary call", Mr Johnson said.
Ukraine: Boris Johnson says Putin threatened him with missile strike
Posted from bbc.com
Vladimir Putin
Russia
Ukraine
United Kingdom
Posted >1 y ago
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PO1 William "Chip" Nagel
.."The CIA director said he was direct in laying out the message President Biden had sent him to deliver: the US knew what Mr Putin was up to and he would pay a heavy price if he launched such an invasion.
He said the Russian president did not deny planning was underway and listed grievances about Ukraine and the West.
"I was troubled before I arrived in Moscow. And I was even more troubled after I left," Mr Burns added.
Less than a fortnight after the UK defence secretary left Moscow, as tanks rolled over the border on 24 February, Mr Johnson received a phone call in the middle of the night from President Zelensky.
"Zelensky's very, very calm," Mr Johnson recalled. "But, he tells me, you know, they're attacking everywhere."
Mr Johnson says he offered to help move the president to safety.
"He doesn't take me up on that offer. He heroically stayed where he was."
Putin Vs the West will be broadcast on Monday 30 January on BBC Two at 21:00, and will be available on the iPlayer in the UK."
.."The CIA director said he was direct in laying out the message President Biden had sent him to deliver: the US knew what Mr Putin was up to and he would pay a heavy price if he launched such an invasion.
He said the Russian president did not deny planning was underway and listed grievances about Ukraine and the West.
"I was troubled before I arrived in Moscow. And I was even more troubled after I left," Mr Burns added.
Less than a fortnight after the UK defence secretary left Moscow, as tanks rolled over the border on 24 February, Mr Johnson received a phone call in the middle of the night from President Zelensky.
"Zelensky's very, very calm," Mr Johnson recalled. "But, he tells me, you know, they're attacking everywhere."
Mr Johnson says he offered to help move the president to safety.
"He doesn't take me up on that offer. He heroically stayed where he was."
Putin Vs the West will be broadcast on Monday 30 January on BBC Two at 21:00, and will be available on the iPlayer in the UK."
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