Boris Johnson in Kyiv: just for show?
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson made a surprise visit to the Ukrainian capital on the weekend. On the one hand, the UK has supplied Ukraine with weapons without hesitation since the beginning of the war, but on the other hand it has been slow in imposing sanctions on Russian oligarchs for a long time. Commentators criticise the PM for putting himself in the limelight.
Butler to the US
Boris Johnson is a warmonger, fumes La Stampa:
“Since the beginning of the conflict, Johnson has been trying to take the Western coalition's front seat in the trenches. Those he most wants to distance himself from are the Europeans, the usual procrastinators, the 'yes, but' sayers whom John Bull gives a good telling off. ... In the march on Moscow as the vanguard of total war, all he needs are the loyal Poles. ... And of course the Americans. The latter he is paving the way for, as has been the tradition since the Suez crisis of 1956, the dying gasp of the British Empire and the beginning of the less glamorous era as loyal butler to the Anglo-Saxon cousins. Other British leaders like Blair in the ill-fated Iraq War have also devoted themselves to this office out of necessity.”
Not only weapons but also visas
The UK may be leading the way in supplying arms to Ukraine, but it is bringing up the rear when it comes to taking in Ukrainian refugees, The Independent points out:
“For a country of the size and wealth of the UK, 12,000 is a pitiful number. ... If Johnson wishes to trumpet his successes with regard to the assistance the UK has provided Ukraine, which he most certainly does, he must address the failure of the UK's refugee policy as a matter of utmost urgency. It is not as if he doesn't understand the mortal danger faced by the people of Ukraine. They need the security provided by a safe place to live, every bit as much as they need the security that comes out of the barrel of a gun.”