Only after he returned to the United Kingdom did a Downing Street spokesman confirm that he had flown to Poland and then traveled by train across the Ukrainian railways. In a grim video posted by the railway service, the prime minister paid tribute to transport workers for their bravery, before stopping for photos with them in a train car. “I’m gathered that you are called the Iron Man… I think it also reflects the spirit you show and the spirit of Ukraine resisting the awful aggression we see. “We in the United Kingdom are in sympathy and solidarity with you,” he said in the video. Johnson had reportedly been “desperate” to visit Kyiv for weeks, and did so just one day after European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and Polish President Andrzej Duda, and the same morning with the Austrian Chancellor Karl Nehammer. . Understandably, the trip to Ukraine was to be kept secret until the prime minister returned to the United Kingdom, but it was announced by the Ukrainian embassy in London on Saturday afternoon in a tweet that said “surprise” and was accompanied by a wink. emoji. Just in Kyiv on Saturday, his walk in the capital led him to Independence Square and next to a monument to the heroes of the “One Hundred Heavens” who died in pro-EU demonstrations in 2014. Johnson also had a meeting with Zelensky, sitting alone in a large office, where he promised armored vehicles and anti-ship missile systems. Appearing next to Zelensky in a recorded clip, Johnson said the West would continue to “strengthen” sanctions in Moscow as it praised the courage of the Ukrainian resistance. “I think the Ukrainians showed the courage of a lion and you Volodymyr gave the roar of this lion,” he said. “The United Kingdom and others [will] supply equipment, technology, know-how, intelligence, so that Ukraine will never be invaded again. Thus, Ukraine is so fortified and protected – that Ukraine can never be intimidated again. Never be blackmailed again. “Never threaten again in the same way.” The latest support package represents a significant increase in UK military assistance to Ukraine. Johnson appeared to receive a warm welcome from the Ukrainian public, with footage of a meeting with a Ukrainian praising Britain’s contribution to his country’s war effort. A woman gave Johnson and Zelensky ceramic cockerels – a symbol of Ukrainian disobedience since a rooster was left standing in a chest of drawers after the Russian bombing of Borodyanka. If there have been difficult times in terms of security or reception, these have not entered the public sector. Zelensky’s chief diplomatic adviser said Sunday that the visit was “very topical and very important” in terms of the war. Igor Zhovkva told BBC One Sunday Morning that the prime minister’s unannounced visit to the Ukrainian capital took place at Zelenskiy’s invitation. “Any visit to Ukraine now takes place at the invitation of the President of Ukraine. Prime Minister Johnson accepted the invitation and agreed. It may come as a surprise to you, but it does not come as a surprise to us. We were preparing for a while. “This visit was very topical and very important from the point of view of the war,” he told the program. Photos and footage from the visit were largely provided by the Ukrainian government’s press office as leaflets. And the UK government has not said how many advisers or official photographers from Johnson’s team accompanied him. The timing and means of his return are still being kept secret “for security reasons”, according to No. 10. But by Sunday morning, the prime minister had returned to the UK and was working from his holiday home in Cheques.
