Putin threatened Britain with missile strike, Boris Johnson says - The Washington Post

Johnson said Putin made the remarks during a “very long” and “extraordinary” telephone successful aboriginal February past year, arsenic Russian troops were massing on the Ukraine border. Johnson, who was premier curate astatine the time, had precocious visited Kyiv to amusement Western enactment for Ukraine.

“He benignant of threatened maine astatine 1 constituent and said, ‘Boris, I don’t privation to wounded you, but with a missile, it would lone instrumentality a minute,’ oregon thing similar that. You cognize … jolly,” Johnson said.

Russia has 1 of the world’s largest stockpiles of atomic weapons, including longer-range missiles, but Johnson suggested that helium didn’t respect Putin’s comments arsenic a superior threat.

“From the relaxed code that helium was taking, the benignant of aerial of detachment that helium seemed to have, helium was conscionable playing on with my attempts to get him to negotiate,” Johnson said.

Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov denied that Putin threatened Johnson with a rocket onslaught and said that the erstwhile premier curate was either deliberately not telling the truth, oregon had misunderstood the Russian president.

“It’s a lie, determination were nary threats of missiles,” helium told reporters during a property briefing. “Speaking astir challenges to the information of the Russian Federation, President Putin noted that if Ukraine joined NATO the imaginable deployment of NATO oregon American missiles adjacent our borders would mean that immoderate rocket would scope Moscow successful minutes. If this transition was perceived successful this way, it is precise embarrassing,” helium said.

For his part, Johnson said that successful the conversation, helium had warned Putin that tougher sanctions would travel if determination was an penetration and that it would bolster Western enactment for Ukraine, resulting successful “more NATO, not little NATO” connected Russia’s borders.

“He said, ‘Boris, you accidental that Ukraine is not going to articulation NATO immoderate clip soon. … What is immoderate clip soon?’ and I said, ‘Well it’s not going to articulation NATO for the foreseeable future. You cognize that perfectly well,’” Johnson recalled of the exchange. Three weeks aft their call, connected Feb. 24, Russia invaded Ukraine.

Johnson has sought to presumption himself arsenic 1 of Ukraine’s astir outspoken supporters. He made a astonishment sojourn to Kyiv conscionable implicit a week agone — contempt having nary authoritative relation successful the British authorities aft being ousted from bureau successful September aft a drawstring of scandals — and met with President Volodymyr Zelensky, pledging that Britain would “stick by Ukraine arsenic agelong arsenic it takes.”

In abstracted comments from excerpts of the documentary “Putin vs the West,” acceptable to aerial Monday evening, British Defense Secretary Ben Wallace besides spoke astir exchanges with Russian officials during a sojourn to Moscow successful February past year.

Referring to conversations with Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu and Gen. Valery Gerasimov, main of the military’s General Staff, helium said: “I retrieve saying to Minister Shoigu ‘they volition fight,’ and helium said, ‘my parent is Ukrainian, they won’t!’ He besides said helium had nary volition of invading.”

“That would beryllium ‘vran’e’ successful the Russian language. ‘Vran’e’ I deliberation is benignant of a objection of bullying oregon strength: I’m going to prevarication to you. You cognize I’m lying. I cognize you cognize I’m lying, and I’m inactive going to prevarication to you. He knew I knew, and I knew helium knew. But I deliberation it was astir saying: I’m powerful.

“It was the reasonably chilling but nonstop prevarication of what they were not going to bash that I deliberation to maine confirmed they were going to bash it. I retrieve arsenic we were walking out, Gen. Gerasimov said, ‘Never again volition we beryllium humiliated. We utilized to beryllium the 4th service successful the world, we’re present fig two. It’s present America and us.’ And determination successful that infinitesimal was that consciousness of perchance wherefore [they were doing this].”

Natalia Abbakumova successful Riga, Latvia contributed to this report.