Johnson's War-Leader Act Is Ridiculed In EU Capitals

Boris Johnson is presenting himself as leader of Europe’s fight against Russia. He sensed an opening, given Angela Merkel’s departure and Emmanuel Macron’s weakened authority after his naivety during his talks with Vladimir Putin before the invasion of Ukraine.

- Andrew Grice

This week, Johnson has hosted two London summits with fellow leaders in the anti-Putin coalition – the first with Canada and the Netherlands, the second with Poland, Hungary, the Czech Republic and Slovakia. His campaign was boosted when Volodymyr Zelensky, Ukraine’s remarkable president, told him “we are very grateful to you, Boris”, in his moving speech to the Commons.

Good pictures, and yet Johnson’s pitch to be leading Europe is ridiculed in EU capitals. Diplomats note that UK ministers talk up the role of Nato and the G7 – but barely mention the EU’s. “The UK wants to give the impression it is leading in Europe but it is not,” one said. “The truth is that we miss the UK’s strategic thinking on security. It could have been a key voice in the EU debate. But it is now irrelevant to it”.