Boris Johnson will seek to put his domestic political difficulties to one side as he meets world leaders for crunch summits in Europe over the coming days. The Prime Minister will promise further financial support for Ukraine in the form of £429 million (525 million US dollars) in guarantees for World Bank lending and urge allies to commit to supporting Volodymyr Zelensky as the war against Russia drags on.
But his trip to the G7 summit in Germany from Sunday and the Nato meeting in Madrid from Tuesday will keep him out of the country at a time when the Tory party is questioning his leadership in the wake of humiliating by-election defeats and the resignation of party chairman Oliver Dowden.
Mr Johnson was away at a Commonwealth meeting in Rwanda as the by-election results from Tiverton and Honiton and Wakefield came in and he is not expected to return to the UK until after the Nato summit concludes on Thursday, meaning his ability to reassure wavering MPs – or snuff out Westminster plots against him – will be diminished.
