Do Not Give Ground On Ukraine, PM Tells Leaders

Under pressure at home, Johnson uses G7 to warn against a deal with Putin

- Peter Walker, Andrew Sparrow

Boris Johnson has urged other world leaders to hold firm in their long-term support for Ukraine, amid increasing concern in Downing Street that some countries could become swayed by calls for Kyiv to cede territory to Russia in exchange for peace.

Arriving at the G7 summit in southern Germany, as his domestic political woes continued to swirl, Johnson used a string of bilateral meetings and TV interviews to present himself as a bulwark against potential backsliding by the US and other western nations.

Johnson's strong words on Ukraine served as a contrast to the fierce criticism the prime minister continues to face at home after last week's crushing by-election defeats in Devon and Yorkshire. Senior backbench figures have urged cabinet ministers to be firmer in their opposition to Johnson.

The prime minister's remark on Saturday evening that he planned to be in office until the 2030s added fuel to the suggestion that he could face another confidence vote if the Conservative 1922 Committee changed its rules to allow a second ballot.

Johnson even connected the two situations, telling CNN that Vladimir Putin would not have been able to invade a sovereign neighbour if he too had "a committee of backbenchers" threatening to depose him for any mistakes.

Outlining his key message for the G7 gathering, one he will reiterate this week at a Nato summit in Madrid, Johnson said the financial cost of providing longstanding support to Ukraine was "a price worth paying for democracy and freedom".

"I would just say to people in the United States that this is something that America historically does and has to do," he told CNN. The global consequences of letting Russia prevail, Johnson added, would be "absolutely catastrophic".