 "Former British Prime Minister Boris Johnson.")
Former British prime minister Boris Johnson has urged European leaders not to take Donald Trump’s blaming of the Ukrainians for their country’s own invasion too literally, suggesting that his statements are not meant to be historically accurate but are intended to provoke Europeans into taking action.
At a press conference Tuesday night, Trump blamed Ukraine for the war with Russia and argued that Kyiv should hold new elections, in his first public remarks following high-level US-Russia talks in Riyadh earlier that day.
Trump claimed that Ukraine “should have never started” the war with Russia. He then accused Zelenskyy of being “grossly incompetent” and claimed his approval rating stands at 4%.
Johnson, who has been a staunch ally of Ukraine while also praising Trump, leapt to the US president’s defence on Wednesday.
He questioned some of Trump’s recent claims but suggested that European nations should interpret them as a negotiating tactic rather than a serious stance.
Taking to X, Johnson said, “When are we Europeans going to stop being scandalised about Donald Trump and start helping him to end this war?
“Of course Ukraine didn’t start the war. You might as well say that America attacked Japan at Pearl Harbor.
“Of course a country undergoing a violent invasion should not be staging elections. There was no general election in the UK from 1935 to 1945. Of course Zelenskyy’s ratings are not 4 percent. They are actually about the same as Trump’s.”
“Trump’s statements are not intended to be historically accurate but to shock Europeans into action,” he added.
He said the US has identified approximately $300 billion in frozen Russian assets, primarily located in Belgium, which could be used to pay Ukraine and compensate the US for its support.
“Why is Europe preventing the unfreezing of Putin’s cash?” he asked.
“The US believes Belgium, France and other countries are blocking. It’s absurd. We need to get serious and fast,” he added.
Since leaving office in 2022, Johnson has been advocating for continued Republican support for Ukraine. He dined with Trump to discuss the situation in Ukraine and met the US president at the Republican National Convention.
Last week, he criticised European leaders for what he called “headless chicken-ism” regarding the Russia-US talks and urged them to “man up and step up” in this latest phase of the conflict.
With inputs from agencies