Opponents accused the British leader of making a ridiculous comparison, comparing Ukraine’s fight against invasion to the U.K.’s withdrawal from the European Union.
Johnson stated that Putin was “terrified” by the prospect of a free Ukraine sparking a pro-democracy revolution within Russia, while speaking at a Conservative Party conference held in Blackpool.
Johnson stated, “That’s why he is trying to so brutally snuffout the flame of freedom Ukraine and that is why it is so crucial that he fails.”
“A victorious Putin won’t stop in Ukraine. Johnson stated that the end of freedom and liberty in Ukraine would mean the end of all hope for freedom in Georgia, Moldova, and it will also mean the beginning a new era of intimidation in Eastern Europe, from the Baltic Sea to the Black Sea.”
Johnson was kind enough to praise the Ukrainians for their defense and add that it was also the “instinct” of British people to choose freedom. He said British voters chose to leave the EU in 2016 because they wanted freedom to do things differently and to have the country run themselves.
Johnson was a leader in the campaign to get the U.K. out of the 1973 bloc it had joined. The UK’s withdrawal, which was completed in 2020, is still highly divisive.
Ed Davey, the leader of the opposition Liberal Democrats called Johnson “a national embarrassment.”
He said, “To compare a referendum with women and children fleeing Putin’s bombs to is an insult for every Ukrainian.”
Gavin Barwell was the former chief of staff to Theresa May and Conservative Prime Minister. He said that voting in a free, fair referendum wasn’t comparable to risking your life in order to defend your country from invasion.
Barwell also mentioned that Ukraine had asked to join EU.
