‘How can you negotiate with a crocodile when it’s got your leg in its jaws?’: Boris Johnson fears Ukraine peace talks with Russia are doomed because of Vladimir Putin’s ‘lack of good faith’
- The Prime Minister said it is ‘very hard’ to see how Kyiv can negotiate with Putin
- He said it was like negotiating with a crocodile ‘when it’s got your leg in its jaws’
- Talks between Ukraine and Russia have stalled since a meeting on March 29
Peace talks between Russia and Ukraine are doomed, Boris Johnson warned reporters in India last night.
The Prime Minister said it is ‘very hard’ to see how Kyiv can negotiate with President Vladimir Putin given his ‘lack of good faith’.
‘How can you negotiate with a crocodile when it’s got your leg in its jaws?’ Mr Johnson asked.
Boris Johnson has said it is ‘very hard’ to see how Ukraine can negotiate with Russia given Vladimir Putin’s ‘lack of good faith’
The Prime Minister compared negotiating with Putin now to negotiating ‘with a crocodile when it’s got your leg in its jaws’
Talks between Ukraine and Russia have stalled – with each side blaming the other for the breakdown.
Kyiv and Moscow have not held face-to-face talks since March 29, and Ukraine’s lead negotiator said this week it was hard to predict when they would resume because of Russia’s siege of Mariupol.
Tonight Mr Johnson also expressed his fears that there will not be a negotiated resolution to the conflict.
Kyiv and Moscow have not held face-to-face talks since March 29, and Ukraine’s lead negotiator said this week it was hard to predict when they would resume because of Russia’s siege of Mariupol. Pictured is Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky
Speaking to reporters as he flew to India for a two-day diplomatic trip, he said: ‘It’s very difficult.
‘It’s not for the UK or for anyone else to try and substitute ourselves for the Ukrainians. It’s for the Ukrainians to decide their future.
‘But it’s very hard to see how they can negotiate with Putin now given his manifest lack of good faith.’
He added: ‘We’ve just got to keep supplying them with the things they need.’
While Mr Johnson’s trip to India is not directly linked to the Ukraine crisis, his spokesman said it ‘will of course be a topic of discussion’.