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Updated July 2nd, 2022 at 06:28 IST

Boris Johnson receives title of Honorary Citizen of Odesa as Ukraine calls him 'main ally'

The Prime Minister of the UK, Boris Johnson was offered the honorary citizenship of Odesa Oblast in Ukraine for his immense support to Ukraine amid the war.

Reported by: Dipaneeta Das
Boris Johnson
IMAGE: AP | Image:self
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The Prime Minister of the UK, Boris Johnson on Friday was offered the honorary citizenship of Odesa Oblast in Ukraine. Speaking to BBC, Odesa Mayor Gennadiy Trukhanov said the City Council observed the immense contribution of Britain to help Kyiv fight the war against Russia. Taking to Telegram, Major Trukhanov informed that he signed the decree on July 1 making Johnson an honorary citizen of the Odesa City. 

"We highly appreciate the help of your country, your prime minister," Trukhanov told BBC.

"That is why I signed the order on awarding Boris Johnson with the Order of Honour named after Hryhoriy Marazil of the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd degrees," he added.

Trukhanov mentioned that with a significant amount and impactful steps against Russia, Britain has emerged as the "main ally and friend" of Ukraine in the ongoing war. He claimed that the Ukrainians "would have defeated the invaders a long time ago" if the entire global community had shown the same solidarity with Kyiv as the people of Britain. He emphasised that the "fight" against Russian aggression was equivalent to pushing back against a "fascism version 2.0," in which the UK PM will become the first honorary citizen- a subject of Great Britain, during the entire existence of the award since 1862, Ukrinform reported, citing the mayor.

The honorary award comes after Johnson became the first European leader to visit Ukraine twice amid the ongoing war. In addition, he also invited Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to Britain. Meanwhile, London has vowed to step up its efforts to help Kyiv with an additional $1.2 billion for security support due to an imminent economic meltdown threat hovering over Ukraine. Apart from this, Britain also promised to double its military support, allocating new $1.2 billion for Ukraine to transition from defence to assault operations. "This will go towards capabilities including sophisticated air defence systems, innovative new electronic warfare equipment and vital kit for Ukrainian soldiers," UK PM's office said in a statement. Speaking at the NATO's Madrid Summit on June 30, Johnson also promised to support Kyiv "no matter how difficult it is." He said that it is "quite logical" to continue to strengthen military support as Ukrainian troops have displayed strong defence in the "unjust" war waged by Russia's President Vladimir Putin.

UK military experts to be deployed in Bosnia & Herzegovina to counter Russian threat

In a bid to strengthen the security situation at European borders, British PM Johnson on Thursday declared that the UK will deploy military experts to Bosnia and Herzegovina. This comes as both nations on Balkan Peninsula are crushed under the largest existential threat in its post-war history. The UK government will assist the Bosnian and Herzegovinian governments to counter disinformation against the negative influence of the Russian Federation and curtail threats that undermine the democracy of the independent nations.

(Image: AP)

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Published July 2nd, 2022 at 06:28 IST

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