Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said he is “very happy” that Boris Johnson remains Britain’s prime minister after surviving a confidence vote.
Johnson survived a vote of confidence within the ruling Conservative Party on Monday evening, with 211 MPs backing him and 148 wanting him to step down over the partygate scandal.
Speaking over video link at an online event hosted by the Financial Times on Tuesday morning, Zelenskyy said: “I am very happy about this. Boris Johnson is a true friend of Ukraine. I regard him as our ally, and Great Britain as a great ally.”
Speaking through a translator, Zelenskyy added: “Boris is supporting us. Boris is very concrete in supporting Ukraine. I do not know who was responsible for this decision yesterday but I’m glad we have not lost a very important ally. This is great news. That is all I can say.”
A Downing Street spokesman reacted by saying: “The prime minister enjoys a very close relationship with President Zelenskyy. He believes it is vital to how the UK is able to adapt and support Ukraine in this fast-moving situation.”
The relationship “benefits both the Ukrainian people in being able to be responsive to the support they need but also to ensure the UK is at the forefront of providing that support,” he said.
The UK has become one of Ukraine’s most important allies in the country’s resistance against the Russian invasion, providing both advanced weaponry and humanitarian aid.
On May 7, the UK government pledged £1.3 billion ($1.6 billion) worth of further military support to Ukraine.
Just before Monday’s confidence vote, Johnson told Conservative MPs that it was the wrong time for “unforced domestic political drama” when the war is still raging in Ukraine.
In a Cabinet meeting on Tuesday, Johnson reiterated the UK’s support for Ukraine, and said it is vital that Zelenskyy is not pressured into accepting a bad peace and that the world must avoid any outcome where the Russian invasion appears to have paid off.
Some Ukrainian commentators have expressed relief that Johnson survived as prime minister for now.
Mykhaylo Podolyak, one of Zelenskyy’s advisers, wrote on Twitter after the confidence vote: “Leadership is always a heavy burden. Boris Johnson was one of the first who realised the menace of Russia & stood by Volodymyr Zelenskyy to protect the free world from barbaric invasion.
“The world needs such leaders. The UK is a great friend of Ukraine. British crown is a shield of democratic world.”
