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Boris Johnson says Trump played ‘important role’ in arming Ukraine
Boris Johnson says Trump played ‘important role’ in arming Ukraine
5
Adam Forrest
Thu, July 6, 2023 at 3:08 AM PDT·2 min read
In this article:
Donald Trump
President of the United States from 2017 to 2021
Boris Johnson
Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 2019 to 2022
Boris Johnson said he told Donald Trump that he had played an “important role” in supporting Ukraine against the Russian invasion, whether he was aware of it or not.
The former PM said he “reminded” the ex-US president he had approved the sale of Javelin anti-tank missiles to Ukraine in 2018 – before claiming British military aid was “enabled” by Mr Trump’s example.
Speaking in an interview with the One Decision podcast, “I just think
it’s very important if you have a chance to talk to people like Donald
Trump, just to get … over [that] I know in my heart that Ukrainians are
going to win. I know they deserve to win.”
“And I know that America has played a crucial role in making sure that
is the right outcome. I think it’s important to remind somebody like
Donald Trump, you know – he actually played an important role,” he added.
Mr Trump was considered by many too sympathetic to Vladimir Putin while
US president. Since departing the White House – with another
presidential bid on the horizon – he has refused to commit to ongoing US support for Ukraine.
Asked if Mr Trump could threaten that support, Mr Johnson said: “Don’t forget who sent the first Javelins out – it was Donald Trump.”
Interviewer Julia Macfarlane pointed out that Mr Trump had “withheld” further military support – and was later found to broken the law by
blocking congressionally approved military aid to Kyiv.
But Mr Johnson insisted that the sale of anti-tank missiles had
“actually enabled us in the UK, in a way”. The former PM said his conversation with the former president was “a very free-flowing
energetic conversation, as you’d expect”.
The former Tory leader said he had spoken to Republicans at events in
the US recently to push ongoing support for Ukraine during “pre-election period of ferment”.
Boris Johnson with Donald Trump in 2019 (The Associated Press. All
rights reserved.)
He said: “I’m very concerned just to get over the message that whatever
you people may be hearing, what other people may be thinking, the war in Ukraine is immensely important, and Ukrainian victory is essential, and
it’s the only way out.”
Mr Johnson said Joe Biden’s support for Ukraine against the Russian
invasion was “outstanding”, but called on western allies to “speed up” in providing weapons.
The former PM also scoffed at a question about his handling of groping allegations against former Tory whip Chris Pincher by pretending to fall asleep.
Asked if he wished he had listened to Tory MPs when they shared their
unease over his failure to act on claims against Mr Pincher, Mr Johnson
looked disgruntled – then pretended to snore.
The standards committee had recommended a n eight-week suspension for Mr Pincher paving the way for another damaging by-election for Rishi Sunak
in Tamworth.
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