UK PM Johnson Says He Will Tell Putin to 'Step Back From the Brink' in Ukraine

LONDON (Sputnik) – UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson said on Monday ahead of a phone conversation with Russian President Vladimir Putin that he will tell him that "we really all need to step back from the brink," adding that a Russian invasion of Ukraine would be an "absolute disaster for the world".

"What I will say to President Putin, as I have said before, is that I think we really all need to step back from the brink. I think Russia needs to step back from the brink", Johnson told broadcaster during a visit to Tilbury, in the English county of Essex.

The UK prime minister also said that "an invasion of Ukraine, any incursion into Ukraine beyond the territory that Russia has already taken in 2014 would be an absolute disaster for the world, and above all, it would be a disaster for Russia".

Johnson’s office has announced that he will have a phone conversation with Putin amid increasing tension on the Russian-Ukrainian border.

Western countries are accusing Russia of a military build-up along the border with Ukraine, seeing it as a preparation for invasion. Moscow, however, denied the allegations and stressed there are no intentions to launch a military operation against any country. Russia also views the allegations as a pretext to deploy NATO military equipment near the country's borders.