British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has said Putin must fail in Ukraine so that the freedom of Europe can be continually guaranteed.
In his closing speech at the Conservative Party Spring Conference in Blackpool, Johnson said a victorious Putin would not stop in Ukraine and it would be a green light to autocrats everywhere.
“It will mean the beginning of a new age of intimidation across eastern Europe, from the Baltic to the Black Sea,” he added.
Johnson began his speech by declaring solidarity for the Ukrainian people, adding: “We stand with the Ukrainian people and our hearts go out to them.
“Tens of thousands of people in this country are opening their homes to the people of Ukraine.
“With every day that Ukraine’s heroic resistance continues it is clear that Putin has made a catastrophic mistake and you have to ask yourself why he did it.
“Why did he decide to invade this totally innocent country?”
The PM said that Putin is carrying out a vicious attack on civilians “that we haven’t seen since the 1940s.”
Johnson stated that Putin was afraid of the freedom and progress of Ukraine and accused him of starting the war because he was frightened by the freedom of the Ukrainian people.
“He didn’t really believe that Ukraine was going to join NATO any time soon, he knew perfectly well there was no plan to put missiles on Ukrainian soil.
“He didn’t really believe the semi-mystical guff he wrote about the origins of the Russian people.
“That wasn’t what it was about, I think he was frightened of Ukraine for an entirely different reason,” Johnson said.
“With every year that Ukraine progressed – not always easily – towards freedom and democracy and open markets, he feared the Ukrainian example and he feared the implicit reproach to himself.
“Because in Putin’s Russia you get jailed for 15 years just for calling an invasion an invasion, and if you stand against Putin in an election you get poisoned or shot.
“It’s precise because Ukraine and Russia have been so historically close that he has been terrified of the effect of that Ukrainian model on him and on Russia,” he added.
Praising the UK government for the sanctions imposed on Russia and its oligarchs so far, Johnson said the UK must end its dependence on Russia’s oil and gas.
“We must take the bold steps necessary to end our dependence on Putin’s oil and gas,” the PM said.
“It is time to take back control of our energy supplies,” Johnson exclaimed to the applause of his audience.
The PM also lauded the Ukrainian resistance, adding that: “he (Putin) has locked himself in an echo chamber of sycophants.
“If he had free, impartial, responsible journalists, he would have known the truth that the Ukrainians are a proud nation with a charismatic leader.
“He would have known before he set out on this disastrous and inhuman venture that they would fight to defend their homeland.”
