Boris Johnson's resignation - cheers in the Kremlin

Created: 07/07/2022, 14:06

By: Tobias Utz

Cheers erupt in the Kremlin over Boris Johnson's announced resignation.

The reactions are not long in coming.

Moscow/London – Britain's Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced his resignation on Thursday afternoon.

After several ministers resigned, the pressure on the head of government was apparently too great.

Shortly before Johnson appeared in front of the cameras in Downing Street, it was already said from Russia that they were hoping for “more professional people” to succeed him.

"We hope that one day more professional people will come to power in Britain who can make decisions through dialogue," said Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov in Moscow.

Former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev hailed Johnson's decision: "The 'best friends of Ukraine' are leaving.

'Victory' is in jeopardy!” he wrote on Telegram.

"Johnson's departure was the "rightful result of British insolence and lackluster politics.

Especially in the international field,” he continued.

Boris Johnson's resignation: Medvedev hopes for domino effect

Great Britain is considered a partner state of Ukraine.

Prime Minister Johnson personally traveled to Kyiv to be photographed with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

The government also approved numerous arms deliveries, most recently a missile system in early June.

Medvedev speculated that Johnson's announcement of his resignation could now lead to a change in Britain's attitude.

In addition, Medvedev explained that there could be a kind of domino effect in Europe: "We are waiting for news from Germany, Poland and the Baltic States," said the former head of state of Russia.

Medvedev and Putin in 2020. (Archive photo) © Alexei Nikolsky / Imago Images

Dmitry Medvedev is not a blank slate in the Ukraine war: the former president has repeatedly threatened Ukraine's allies with nuclear weapons.

Only on Wednesday did he react to investigations by the International Court of Justice into possible war crimes with a renewed threat: "The idea of ​​punishing a country that has the largest nuclear arsenal is absurd in and of itself," Medvedev wrote on Telegram.

This may create "a threat to the existence of mankind," he stressed.

Medvedev is currently Deputy Chairman of Russia's National Security Council.

He was President of Russia from 2008 to 2012.

He then took over the post of Prime Minister until 2020.

(do with dpa/AFP)