“Putin will lose, China will strengthen”: Boris Johnson’s 3 predictions Ukraine | Tech Reddy

“Putin will lose and deservedly so … Russian exports of military equipment will be affected … and the war in Ukraine will strengthen China … ” – Former British Prime Minister Boris Johnson made three predictions in the fifth and last day of the Hindustan Times Leadership Summit and called for stronger economic, political and military ties between the United Kingdom and​​​​​​​​India.

Johnson – who resigned as Prime Minister in early July – also spoke about the pending free trade agreement between the two countries, saying the deal had “mysteriously developed a flat tire since I left office”. .

Red flag threats from climate change, Covid and “authoritarian” regimes, he said “we have to continue because the threat has grown”.

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In discussions with Hindustan Times Editor-in-Chief R Sukumar, the Conservative Party MP also spoke about Brexit, the UK immigration debate and ​​China, calling the Asian country “a giant event in our lives” and insisting that Delhi and London had. to find a way to work with Beijing.

“We live in dangerous times … even if the United Kingdom and ​​​​India are not bound by family and sentiment, by trade and commerce, by economic interest … we are brought together because of the irresponsible behavior of some of the world’s (most) dangerous autocracies.”

On Russia’s invasion of Ukraine — the “special military operation” launched by President Vladimir Putin in February that shows no sign of a conclusion — Johnson made his three predictions.

“First…Putin will lose. He will be deservedly defeated by the simple heroism of love for the country (shown) by the people of Ukraine. I can say that the UK will continue to support – economically, politically and military – until they “. they took back their country,” he said.

The former British Prime Minister slammed Putin as a “propaganda master” and warned he would end up pushing his “certain” defeat as a victory for Russia, and said he expected that the Russians are making history.

READ | The Ukrainian foreign minister says that “the war continues” after the success of Kherson

“Secondly… Russian exports of military equipment will be badly affected around the world because of what is happening (in Ukraine). It is a disastrous advertisement for the Russian war machine. 60 percent of the missiles of accuracy became duds – which is less accurate than my first serve in tennis. Chinese-made tires exploded under Russian armored cars,” he scoffed.

Johnson also pointed out that Russia – which exports billions in arms to India – has failed to control Ukrainian airspace despite having superior force.

READ | Outgoing British Prime Minister Liz Truss calls for continued support for Ukraine

“The third is that throughout Asia, this disastrous miscalculation by Putin will severely weaken Russia and strengthen China. You can already see it happening in Uzbekistan and throughout the former Soviet Union and beyond.

He also slammed Putin as a “punk of (Chinese President) Xi Jinping” and said Russia is being “pushed by a giant assertive kung-fu panda (a reference to China).”

“I could argue that given the tension that we see throughout the APAC (Asia Pacific) region and the obvious correlation with what is happening in Ukraine and Taiwan in the South China Sea … it is increasingly vital that we two democracies work together. for our economic health and collective stability.”

Johnson said that this collaboration is already in place and pointed to the cooperation between India and the United Kingdom in the production of Covid vaccines as an example. The AztraZeneca vaccine was developed by British scientists at the University of Oxford and mass-produced by the Serum Institute in Pune.

The former British Prime Minister also pointed to China’s “zero Covid” policy – which has been heavily criticized – to dismiss suggestions “that democracies are not as good as authoritarian regimes at dealing with pandemics”.

READ | China’s leaders recommit to “unwavering” zero-Covid policy

“It was our two democracies that came together to distribute billions of doses of vaccines around the world,” Johnson said, declaring: “I am personally the beneficiary of the AstraZeneca masala.”

In a final pitch for increased trade between the UK and India, Johnson reminded his audience that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had, in April, decided on Diwali (October 24 ).

“Prime Minister Modi and I said that it would be done by Diwali. I wonder what is the hold-up … the possibilities (of collaboration) are immense, but we have to take it because the threat has grown. The government Modi wants this…and I know my government wants it too,” he concluded.