Ukraine-Russia war latest: Send UK troops to Kyiv warzone now, Boris Johnson urges

The former prime minister said the move could ‘flip a switch’ in Putin’s head LiveupdatedNewsWorldEuropeUkraine-Russia war latest: Send UK troops to Kyiv warzone now, Boris Johnson urgesThe former prime minister said the move could ‘flip a switch’ in Putin’s headSam Kiley In Zaporizhzhia, Shahana Yasmin & Nicole Wootton-CaneSaturday 21 February 2026 14:58 GMTBookmarkCommentsGo to commentsBookmark popoverRemoved from bookmarksClose popoverBoris Johnson says UK should send non-combat troops to Ukraine nowYour support helps us to tell the storyRead moreSupport NowFrom reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. 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We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.Your support makes all the difference.Read moreFormer prime minister Boris Johnson has said the UK should send non-combat troops to Ukraine now in a bid to “flip a switch” in Russian leader Vladimir Putin’s head.Mr Johnson said the country should put boots on the ground in non-fighting zones, adding Ukraine’s allies have been “too slow” to send support to Kyiv.Speaking to the BBC’s Laura Kuenssberg alongside the former head of the military, Adm Sir Tony Radakin, the former PM said: "We've always delayed needlessly,."We've then ended up giving the Ukrainians what they have been asking for, and actually it's always served to their advantage and to the disadvantage of Putin."I mean, the one person who suffers from escalation is Putin."It comes after Hungary has said it is prepared to block a key European Union (EU) loan to Ukraine unless Kyiv allows shipments of Russian oil to resume.The EU nation has been blocked from receiving Russian oil through the Druzhba pipeline since 27 January, after Ukrainian officials said a Russian drone attack caused damage to the infrastructure.But in a video posted on social media on Friday evening, foreign minister Peter Szijjarto accused Ukraine of "blackmailing" Hungary by failing to restart oil shipments.RecommendedZelensky tears into Putin over Ukraine-Russia peace talks: ‘I don’t need historical s**t’Russia recruits over 1,000 Kenyans to fight in Putin’s war in Ukraine, intelligence report saysUkraine frontline mapped: Kyiv counteroffensive regained territory before fruitless US peace talksKey PointsSpecial report: The only place to hide from Putin’s killer drones is our underground school Hungary prepared to block key EU loan over oil row, minister saysRussian drone attack kills at least three in Kharkiv regionPutin signs law granting security services power to disconnect internetUkraine officials to boycott games in protest over Russia’s participationSpecial report: The only place to hide from Putin’s killer drones is our underground school‘The only place to hide from Putin’s killer drones is our underground school’In a harrowing dispatch from the frontline city of Nikopol - so close to Russian forces that few journalists have ventured there - World Affairs Editor Sam Kiley talks to children, parents and teachers who are hunted down daily by Putin's deadly quadcopters, yet have somehow managed to survive Nicole Wootton-Cane21 February 2026 14:57UK should send non-combat troops to Ukraine now, former PM Johnson saysThe UK should sent non-combat troops to Ukraine now, former prime minister Boris Johnson has said.Speaking to the BBC’s Laura Kuenssberg, he said boots should be on the ground to "flip a switch" in Russian President Vladimir Putin's head.He said: "If we can have a plan for boots on the ground after the war, after Putin has condescended to have a ceasefire, then why not do it now?"Boris Johnson says UK should send non-combat troops to Ukraine nowNicole Wootton-Cane21 February 2026 14:33Ukraine returns two more children from Russian occupation, authorities sayUkrainian forces have returned two more children from the Russian-occupied Kherson Oblast, bringing the total of freed children from the region to 31 this year, authorities saidThe head of the Kherson Regional Military Administration, Oleksandr Prokudin, reported the children were returned under the Bring Kids Back UA initiative, which finds and returns Ukrainian children from occupied territories and Russia.Nicole Wootton-Cane21 February 2026 14:15Zelensky meets with Nato chief as he prepares for further peace talksVolodymyr Zelensky has met with Nato chief Mark Rutte as he prepares for furth