Boris Johnson will telephone Russian President Vladimir Putin and visit Eastern Europe in the coming days as the UK steps up its diplomatic efforts to resolve the Ukraine border crisis.
No 10 said the PM would rehash the requirement for Russia to “connect strategically” when he addresses Mr Putin this week.He will “emphasize the requirement for Russia to venture back”, No 10 added.Mr Johnson has said the UK could send troops to secure Nato partners assuming that Russia attacked Ukraine.
Russia – which has denied it intends to attack Ukraine – has set around 100,00 soldiers, tanks, gunnery and rockets close to Ukraine’s boundary.It is the initial time since World War Two that Russia has moved soldiers from the east of the country to the Ukraine line.Mr Johnson has asked military and security bosses to give him more choices to relieve against what Downing Street has called “developing Russian animosity”.This weekend, the head of the state is thinking about those choices – including the sending of more British soldiers to Nato nations in the area.On Monday, the Foreign Office is relied upon to report to Parliament a hardening of its authorizations system, which would empower the UK to target Russian interests.Last week, Mr Johnson joined a call with US President Joe Biden, European pioneers and Nato Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg.During the call, the pioneers concurred “that conciliatory discussions with Russia stayed the primary goal”, Downing Street said.A Downing Street representative said: “The state not entirely set in stone to speed up strategic endeavors and increase discouragement to keep away from slaughter in Europe.”He will repeat the requirement for Russia to venture back and connect strategically when he addresses President Putin this week.”Last week, Defense Secretary Ben Wallace ventured out to Europe to gather speed for sanctions against Russia and backing for Ukraine.Mr Wallace visited the Hague, Berlin and Belgium to push for additional activity from European partners. He is quickly set to make a trip to Moscow for chats with Russia’s Defense Minister, Sergei Shoigu.The protection secretary has let the BBC know there is still “an opportunity” that a Russian attack could be stopped, yet added: “I’m not hopeful.”In the interim, Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky has encouraged the West not to make alarm – saying that admonitions of an approaching intrusion were undermining the country’s economy.