Liz Truss’s imminent arrival in Downing Street as British prime minister has been greeted with scorn and scarcely veiled condescension from the Kremlin, but an outpouring of praise in Ukraine.
Vladimir Putin’s chief spokesperson, Dmitry Peskov, expressed concerns that relations might deteriorate in comments to reporters shortly before Truss was announced as the winner of the Tory leadership race.
“I wouldn’t like to say that things can change for the worse, because it’s hard to imagine anything worse,” Peskov said when asked if Moscow expected any shift in relations with Britain. “But unfortunately, this cannot be ruled out.”
The Kremlin has openly mocked and belittled Truss since she went to Moscow in February for talks with the Russian foreign minister, Sergei Lavrov. In the meeting, a fortnight before the Russian invasion, Truss challenged Lavrov on the buildup of 100,000 troops on Ukraine’s border, which Moscow denied was preparation for an attack. Lavrov complained that her interventions were “just slogans shouted from the tribunes”.
Russian government spokespeople sneered after a Russian newspaper reported that Truss had confused Russian regions with Ukrainian territory and had to be corrected by the British ambassador. The British government said she had simply misheard a question from Lavrov.
Reacting to Truss’s victory in typically bombastic style, one host on Russian state TV declared: “Stupidity has triumphed: Liz Truss has become the new prime minister … If Boris Johnson achieved Brexit, she wants to achieve something entirely different – the end of the world.”
Ukrainian politicians, however, offered an exuberant welcome. The country’s president, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, said British-Ukraine ties were already “ an unprecedentedly high level”, adding: “We in Ukraine know her well – she has always been on the bright side of European politics. And I believe that together we will be able to do a lot more to protect our nations and to thwart all Russian destructive efforts. The main thing is to preserve our unity, and this will definitely be the case.”
“In Liz, we Truss” tweeted Ukrainian deputy Rustem Umerov. “Mrs Truss is a solid supporter of Ukraine. Hope for a fruitful ongoing partnership between the UK and Ukraine.”
Ukraine’s former president Petro Poroshenko congratulated Truss, writing on Facebook: “I am glad that the alliance between our nations will remain strong and powerful, which is crucial for our common victory over the Russian aggressor and Putin’s regime.”
Ukrainian media reported that Truss’s first call would be to the country’s president, Volodymyr Zelenskiy. Some bloggers were said to have christened Truss “the iron lady”, an epithet bound to delight the new prime minister, who has styled herself on Margaret Thatcher.
The UK has been one of the largest donors to Ukraine, a record that brought praise and popularity for Boris Johnson and respite from his domestic problems. At least one street was renamed after the outgoing British prime minister after the UK announced a £100m weapons package for Ukraine.
On Monday, Zelenskiy tweeted that he had spoken to Johnson on the prime minister’s last full day in office. Zelenskiy said he had thanked him for “his personal bravery, principles and a major contribution” to countering Russian aggression, and added: “I look forward to cooperation with a great friend of Ukraine in a new status.”
Had a summing up conversation with @BorisJohnson in his current capacity. On behalf of all 🇺🇦 people, I thanked him for his personal bravery, principles & a major contribution to countering RF's aggression. I look forward to cooperation with a great friend of 🇺🇦 in a new status.
— Володимир Зеленський (@ZelenskyyUa) September 5, 2022
Sergei Mironov, a hawkish leader in the Russian parliament, said that for Moscow it “does not matter who is in charge” in the UK.
“Anyone in charge will carry out the previous orders to try to contain Russia and turn us into a western colony. Scholz, Macron and other politicians are already doing this,” he wrote on his Telegram channel.
Dmitry Novikov, a senior Russian lawmaker, also said the relationship between Moscow and London will not improve under Truss. “Boris Johnson was already not a pleasant figure to build relations with … There are also no signs to suggest that Liz Truss will somehow improve Russian-British relations.”
Senior Russian Duma deputy Dmitry Belik said that “Russophobic sentiments will only strengthen” under the leadership of Truss.
“We remember the Russophobic sentiments that ex-prime minister Boris Johnson enthusiastically spread. Russophobic sentiments will only strengthen under Truss,” the Russian state news agency, Tass, quoted Belik as saying.
Belik added that, under Truss, the UK would continue to “pump Ukraine with more weapons”.
