Boris Johnson has rejected the Kremlin’s accusation that he is anti-Russian, citing his name as evidence.
Vladamir Putin’s spokesperson said of the prime minister on Thursday morning: “We see him as the most active participant in the race to be anti-Russian.”
But speaking at a press conference at Nato HQ in Brussels, Johnson dismissed the claim.
“I don’t think there is a single person round the table in Nato or the G7 who is against Russians or the Russian people,” he said.
“Least of all me. I am probably the only prime minister in UK history to be called Boris.”
The PM added he was “not remotely anti-Russian” and it was Putin’s “inhuman and barbaric” attack on Ukraine he was opposed to.
Johnson also told reporters that Nato would “ramp up lethal aid to Ukraine” as its forces resist the invasion.
While he did not rule out the West supplying jets and tanks as requested by Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Johnson said it would be “very difficult” to do so logistically.
“At the moment we are looking at the equipment we think is more immediately valuable, missiles that will enable the Ukrainians to protect themselves against bombardment from the air,” he said.
Johnson announced an extra 6,000 missiles and £25 million in unrestricted funding for Ukraine’s armed forces.
He also promised a “new deployment of UK troops to Bulgaria, on top of doubling our troops both in Poland and in Estonia”.