Just before directing Russian soldiers into Ukraine, President Vladimir Putin allegedly threatened to personally assassinate Boris Johnson with a missile attack, according to the former UK prime minister.
A brand-new BBC documentary that will be aired on Monday claims that the apparent threat appeared in a phone call immediately before the invasion on February 24.
To help Ukraine and try to stop a Russian attack, Johnson and other Western leaders had been rushing to Kyiv.
"He sort of threatened me at one point and said, 'Boris, I don't want to hurt you, but with a missile, it would only take a minute', or something like that," Johnson quoted Putin as saying.
Johnson is staunchest supporter of Zelensky
Johnson has emerged as one of Volodymyr Zelensky, the president of Ukraine's staunchest Western supporters.
However, he claims that he took great care to inform Putin before the invasion that there was no immediate likelihood of Ukraine joining NATO and that any assault would result in "more NATO, not less NATO" on Russia's borders.
He said, 'Boris, you say that Ukraine is not going to join NATO any time soon.
"'What is any time soon?' And I said, 'well it's not going to join NATO for the foreseeable future. You know that perfectly well'."
"I think from the very relaxed tone that he was taking, the sort of air of detachment that he seemed to have, he was just playing along with my attempts to get him to negotiate." He further added.
The BBC documentary tracks the widening gap
In the years leading up to the invasion of Ukraine, the BBC documentary tracks the widening gap between the West and the Russian president.
Zelensky is also shown thinking back on his failed attempts to join NATO before Russia attacked.
