Boris Johnson says President-elect Donald Trump was “pretty tough” on Vladimir Putin the last time he was in the Oval Office. But this time around, his longtime political ally is concerned that freedom and democracy globally are now more at risk—the former prime minister of the U.K. claimed Trump has advisors who admire the Russian dictator whispering into his ear.
On stage at Fortune’s Global Forum conference on Monday, Johnson cautioned that the Republican party “has a weird sort of homoerotic fascination with Putin, which I personally don’t share.”
“Some of these people think he’s an all-around stand-up guy and they love his manly Christianity,” he said. “It’s complete nonsense. He’s a tyrant and a kleptocrat and a murderer and a very, very dangerous and bad man.”
“But there’s no question that some of those people are in the 47th President’s ear, and they’re whispering a lot of absolute nonsense to him.”
The British politician accused Viktor Orbán, the Prime Minister of Hungary, of doing the same. “There’s a lot of dangerous, poisonous, pernicious talk at the moment,” Johnson added. “I am hoping and hoping and hoping that that argument will not succeed, and I’m hoping that the argument for democracy and freedom will succeed—and I’m basing my optimism on what I saw last time around.”
Johnson is, of course, referring to Trump’s proposed peace deal. The billionaire boomerang president has repeatedly said that he would put a stop to the more than two and a half years of war in Ukraine “within 24 hours” should he be reinstalled in the White House.
The Kremlin has denied media reports that Trump held a call with Putin, in which he is said to have warned the Russian president against escalating the war in Ukraine.
Either way, Johnson insisted that “there is a genuine risk that the deal will be done that is not in the interests of freedom and democracy.”
“I’m absolutely convinced that it would be a disaster for the world if Ukraine were to go down,” he added. “I nonetheless cling to my memory of Trump when he was in office, where actually he was pretty tough on Putin.”
“So look, I’m just putting it out there. (If) anybody’s in touch with the president elect, here is a golden opportunity to show that the previous administration has been weak because it has not given the Ukrainians provisions they need.”
“The American people re-elected President Trump because they trust him to lead our country and restore peace through strength around the world,” Karoline Leavitt, a spokesperson for Trump told Fortune. “When he returns to the White House, he will take the necessary action to do just that.”
Boris Johnson’s new book
Johnson has been promoting his new memoir, Unleashed, which has been No.1 in the UK since its release last month. Last week, he was removed from Channel 4’s U.S. election night program for promoting his book too much.
The 784-page book looks back on his time as Britain’s prime minister. He served from 2019 until 2022, working alongside Donald Trump for three of those years.
A former magazine editor who became a member of parliament and then mayor of London, he was propelled into power when former PM Theresa May’s premiership collapsed and he was elected Conservative party leader on a promise to “Get Brexit Done.”
Johnson did indeed get Brexit done at the end of 2019. But his victory was short-lived. Soon after, the COVID-19 pandemic hit, marking the start of his downfall.
In his memoir, Johnson claimed that, at the height of the pandemic, he considered sending troops to the Netherlands to seize 5 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines. But the plan was ultimately abandoned because invading a NATO ally would be “nuts.”
He also accused French President Emmanuel Macron of turning a blind eye to gangs smuggling people across the English Channel to punish the U.K. for Brexit.
Of course, Johnson is no stranger to criticism and controversy himself. He was forced to resign from the top job after one too many scandals, including misleading parliament, renovating his home with donor money, and breaking his own lockdown rules during the pandemic.
The shaggy-haired leader was fined by London’s Metropolitan Police for attending a party on government premises, making him the first U.K. prime minister in history found to have broken the law while in office.
In the end, it was his promotion of a member of parliament who had been accused of sexual misconduct which was the final straw. Dozens of members of his own government resigned in protest, all the way up to cabinet level, forcing Johnson to quit in September 2022.
