Putin "I Don't Want to Harm You"
Former UK Prime Minister Releases Call Details
Kremlin Denies as "Complete Lie"
Former Prime Minister Boris Johnson revealed that he received a 'missile attack threat' from Russian President Vladimir Putin just before the Russia-Ukraine war.
However, Russia has completely denied this, calling it a 'lie.'
In a documentary aired on the 30th (local time) by the UK's BBC, the phone call between Johnson, who was then the sitting prime minister, and President Putin in February last year was disclosed. It was a time when Russia's invasion of Ukraine was imminent.
At that time, Johnson warned in the call, "If a war breaks out, it will literally be a disaster," to which President Putin reportedly responded, "It will take only one minute (until the missile directly hits the UK)."
Johnson is said to have warned President Putin during the call that "if a war is waged, economic sanctions will follow, and NATO forces near the Russian border will increase."
However, he recounted, "At some point, he threatened me," saying, "(President Putin) said, 'Boris, I do not want to harm you, but it will take only about a minute by missile,'" describing the situation at the time.
Britain and Russia have had continuous friction even before the Ukraine war. In 2018, Russia was condemned by the international community for attempting to poison a double agent in Salisbury, UK.
Johnson also shared an anecdote about a call with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky after the war broke out. He recalled, "I offered to help President Zelensky evacuate to a safe place, but he refused," adding, "He stayed there like a hero."
The documentary also conveyed intense psychological battles between UK Defense Secretary Ben Wallace and Russian military officials. According to Secretary Wallace, when he visited Moscow, Russian Chief of Staff Valery Gerasimov said, "We will never be humiliated again."
Wallace also mentioned that during talks with Russian Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu, the Russian side said they would not invade Ukraine, but both sides knew this claim was a lie.
Meanwhile, the Russian Kremlin has strongly refuted former Prime Minister Johnson's claims. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov dismissed them, saying, "(Johnson's statements) are not true," and added, "To be clearer, they are complete lies."
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