Boris Johnson warns Vladimir Putin is ‘bent on full-scale invasion’ of Ukraine

Johnson accused Putin of having “completely torn up international law”
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Boris Johnson has warned this morning that Russian president Vladimir Putin is “bent on full-scale invasion” of Ukraine.

Highlighting the Russian president’s apparent intent to capture Ukraine’s capital city Kyiv, Johnson accused Putin of having “completely torn up international law”.

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Early this morning, Johnson chaired a Cobra meeting to discuss sanctions against Russia.

Telling broadcasters he would announce sanctions shortly, Johnson said “This is I should stress just the first barrage of UK economic sanctions against Russia because we expect I’m afraid that there is more Russian irrational behaviour to come”.

“I’m afraid all the evidence is that President Putin is indeed bent on a full-scale invasion of the Ukraine, the overrunning, the subjugation of an independent, sovereign European country and I think, let’s be absolutely clear, that will be absolutely catastrophic.”

Johnson went on to say that if Putin made continued efforts towards “encircling Kyiv itself, which is what he seems to be proposing to do, capturing the Ukrainian capital” then it is imperative Russian efforts “should not succeed and that Putin should fail”.

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The sanctions, Johnson emphasised, would target “economic interests that have been supporting Russia’s war machine,” and would worsen in the event of an invasion. He is expected to reveal the sanctions in the Houses of Commons later today.

The European Union and United States are also imposing sanctions in response to the crisis.

This morning saw a dramatic escalation of tensions as Moscow ordered troops into eastern Ukraine. Health Secretary Sajid Javid said to Sky News that, from Moscow’s actions, “you can conclude that the invasion of Ukraine has begun”.

Dame Barbara Woodward, UK ambassador to the UN Security Council, said that an invasion would unleash “the forces of war, death and destruction” on the people of Ukraine.

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“The humanitarian impact will be terrible on civilians fleeing the fighting. We know that women and children will suffer most,” she continued.

Woodward argued that the Security Council must be united in calling on Russia to “de-escalate immediately”, as well as “condemning aggression against a sovereign nation and defending the territorial integrity of Ukraine”.

Boris Johnson told Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Monday evening that he would “explore sending further defensive support to Ukraine”.

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