By Ben Kerrigan-
The price of freedom is worth paying,” Boris Johnson has said when asked about the cost of helping defend Ukraine. Speaking from a G7 summit, he argued that letting Russia “get away with” invading Ukraine would have “chilling” consequences and lead to instability.
Likening the conflict to defeating Nazi Germany in World War Two, the PM said that war had been “very expensive” but delivered “long term stability”.
The conflict in Ukraine has added to the rising cost of living by exacerbating turbulence in international energy prices and causing food shortages due to supplies of grain being prevented from leaving the country’s ports by Russia’s Black Sea fleet, but Johnson said that to let Russia prevail would be “absolutely chilling” for nearby countries and usher in a period of global anxiety.
Likening the need to oppose Russia to the situation in the second world war, Johnson said that while opposing fascism brought enormous costs, it created decades of prosperity and stability.
The need for long-term support for Ukraine is one of Johnson’s key messages at the G7 summit of world leaders in Bavaria, Germany.
Over a video link, Volodymyr Zelensky told the leaders of the world’s advanced democracies at the summit that his country needed more anti-aircraft defence systems to help repel Russia’s invasion.
He also called for more imposition of sanctions to keep the pressure on Russian leader Vladimir Putin.
G7 leaders, meeting in Germany, are expected to offer more military support as well as further sanctions against Russia, with some planning to ban Russian gold imports.
Speaking to the BBC’s political editor Chris Mason from the summit, Mr Johnson said there was “no alternative” to supporting Ukraine regain its sovereignty.
The British prime minister argued that the consequences of letting Mr Putin “get away with the violent acquisition of huge chunks of another country” would be “absolutely chilling”.
“In terms of the economic effects, that would mean long-term instability and anxiety across the world,” he said.
Asked if there was any limit on the amount of money or support the UK would offer Ukraine, Mr Johnson replied: “The price of freedom is worth paying.”
The prime minister said defeating dictators in World War Two “took a long time” and was “very expensive” but brought “decades and decades of stability” and delivered “long-term prosperity”.
He argued, “the price of freedom is worth paying”. He said: “Just remember, it took the democracies in the middle of the last century a long time to recognise that they had to resist tyranny and aggression. It was very expensive.
“But what it bought in the end, with the defeat of the dictators, particularly of Nazi Germany, it bought decades and decades of stability, a world order that relied on a rules-based international system. And that is worth protecting, that is worth defending, and that delivers long-term prosperity.”
Boris Johnson and wife CarriE Johnson at G7 Image: PA
The UK government says it is spending £1.3bn ($1.6bn) on military support for Ukraine. The ongoing conflict in Ukraine has pushed up oil and gas prices leading to higher energy bills, while a squeeze on Ukrainian global grain production has pushed up the cost of food.
Addressing the repercussions on the UK at a time of rising costs of living, Mr Johnson said: “Just to reassure people at home, I think the economic impacts on the UK will start to abate. Cost pressures will start to come down.”
Whilst Johnson was at the G7 discussing dealing with Russia and winning the war in Ukraine, 1922 committee vie-chair William Wragg, urged ambitious ministers to “show a little backbone and indeed leadership” in pushing the prime minister out of office following losses in the recent by elections which many toies have blame on a loss of confidence due to partygate.
Mr. Wragg joined a growing chorus of former Tory Party leaders, erstwhile ministers and peers demanding that senior members of Mr Johnson’s government consider their positions.
But, speaking at the G7 summit, Mr Johnson insisted he was unperturbed by potential plots to oust him and insisted questions over his leadership had been “settled” in the recent confidence vote.
In an interview over the weekend, Mr Johnson was asked on Radio 4’s Today programme if there was any matter of principle he would consider resigning over, and he said if he had to abandon Ukraine because it became too difficult or the costs were too great, he would quit.
At the G7 summit, leaders of the largest wealthy democracies agreed to back President Volodymyr Zelensky’s efforts to push Russia back to its pre-invasion borders.
The US has offered Ukraine a new air defence system which will allow it to hit targets much further away and intercept attacks on cities such as Kyiv and Lviv – while Nato’s chief has announced a sevenfold increase in the size of the alliance’s high readiness force, with Russia reclassified from “partner” to “threat”.
The Prime Minister called for “strategic endurance” – warning that allowing a Russian victory would also embolden China to expand across east Asia.
Speaking in Bavaria shortly before Mr Zelensky addressed the G7 by video link, Mr Johnson told the BBC: “It’s for Volodymyr Zelensky and his people to decide what they want. And what they want is their land, they want their country to be able to live in peace and freedom. And I totally support that.
“If it was put to me that we had to abandon the Ukrainian cause, because it was simply getting too difficult and that the cost of supporting that people in their heroic fight for freedom was too great in terms of inflation, in terms of economic damage,” he said.
“I think I would, accept that I’d lost a very important argument.”
Meanwhile, Mr Johnson is currently facing pressure from some of his own MPs after his party lost two by-elections last week – including the previously safe seat of Tiverton and Honiton in Devon.
Following the defeats, the Conservative Party chair, Oliver Dowden resigned telling the prime minister it could “not be business as usual”.
Mr Johnson survived a confidence vote among his own MPs in the face if a large rebellion.
Under party rules, Mr Johnson cannot face another leadership challenge for another year. However some Conservative rebels have suggested the party rules could be changed to enable another contest.
At the gathering, Johnson has warned against a temptation to push Zelenskiy into potentially accepting a deal that would bring peace in exchange for Russian control of eastern areas in Ukraine, saying no other countries could make such a choice.
“You can’t be more Ukrainian than the Ukrainians,” he told the BBC. “And I think it is for Volodymyr Zelenskiy and his people to decide what they want. And what they want is their land, they want their country to be able to live in peace and freedom.
“And I totally support that. And so I think the difficulty is that no one here at the G7 can really see any alternative to simply supporting them in regaining their sovereignty.”
But speaking from the G7 summit, he insisted he had the authority to continue governing and had a mandate from the public as well as his own MPs to stay in office.
He said he was focused on his job adding: “It is a huge, huge privilege to do it and nobody abandons a privilege like that.”