{"id":147268,"date":"2021-12-14T01:12:18","date_gmt":"2021-12-14T01:12:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/precoinnews.com\/?p=147268"},"modified":"2021-12-14T01:12:18","modified_gmt":"2021-12-14T01:12:18","slug":"prime-minister-boris-johnson-issues-direct-threat-to-putin-as-tensions-between-russia-ukraine-continue","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/precoinnews.com\/world-news\/prime-minister-boris-johnson-issues-direct-threat-to-putin-as-tensions-between-russia-ukraine-continue\/","title":{"rendered":"Prime Minister Boris Johnson issues direct threat to Putin as tensions between Russia-Ukraine continue"},"content":{"rendered":"
The Prime Minister has warned Vladimir Putin that there would be “significant consequences” if Russia invades Ukraine.<\/p>\n
Boris Johnson spoke to and Mr Putin by telephone on Monday to reinforce the UK’s commitment to Ukraine<\/strong> and tell the president that any destabilising action in the region by Moscow would be a “strategic mistake”.<\/p>\n His call was the latest intervention by western leaders, who are attempting to persuade the Kremlin to draw back amid growing concern at the build-up of Russian troops in the region.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n A Number 10 spokesperson said: “He (the prime minister) reiterated the importance of working through diplomatic channels to de-escalate tensions and identify durable solutions.<\/p>\n “The prime minister emphasised the UK’s commitment to Ukraine’s territorial integrity and sovereignty and warned that any destabilising action would be a strategic mistake that would have significant consequences.”<\/p>\n Will tensions lead to war?<\/strong><\/p>\n On 12 December, the G7 foreign ministers meeting in Liverpool issued a statement<\/strong> reminding Moscow that “any use of force to change borders is strictly prohibited under international law”, pledging to inflict “severe cost” on Russia if it does moves against its neighbour.<\/p>\n On Monday, the European Union announced that it is imposing sanctions on the Russian Wagner Group of military contractors which has been accused of seeking to destabilise Ukraine.<\/p>\n According to US intelligence, Russia has stationed about 70,000 troops near the border of Ukraine and has begun planning for a possible invasion as soon as early next year<\/strong>.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Moscow has denied that it is preparing for an invasion and has accused the government in Kyiv of stoking tensions in the region by deploying new weapons.<\/p>\n Vladimir Putin compares Donbas war zone in Ukraine to ‘genocide’<\/strong><\/p>\n The two countries have been locking horns since 2014 when Russian forces annexed the Crimean Peninsula and backed a separatist rebellion in eastern Ukraine.<\/p>\n Last week, US President Joe Biden spoke to Mr Putin to warn him of “economic consequences like you’ve never seen” if he mounted a fresh incursion.<\/p>\n The Russian president has in turn been pressing for assurances that NATO will not be expanded to include Ukraine and last week likened the Donbas warzone to “genocide”.<\/p>\n