UK PM sets out 6-point plan to defeat Putin

London:  UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson has set out a six-point plan to ensure Russia’s defeat in the ongoing war in Ukraine, the media reported on Sunday.

Writing in The New York Times, the Prime Minister said that “(Russian President Vladimir) Putin must fail and must be seen to fail in this act of aggression”, the BBC reported.

“It is not enough to express our support for the rules-based international order – we must defend it against a sustained attempt to rewrite the rules by military force.”

Mentioning his six-point plan to maintain pressure on the Russian leader, the Prime Minister said that world leaders should mobilise an “international humanitarian coalition” for Ukraine; they should also support Ukraine “in its efforts to provide for its own self-defence”; economic pressure on Russia should be ratcheted up; the international community must resist Russia’s “creeping normalisation” of its actions in Ukraine; diplomatic resolutions to the war must be pursued, but only with the full participation of Ukraine’s legitimate government; and there should be a “rapid campaign to strengthen security and resilience” among Nato countries.

Johnson’s “plan” comes ahead of his meetings with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte at the Downing Street on Monday.

On Tuesday, he will host leaders of the V4 group of central European nations: the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland and Slovakia, according to the Downing Street.

Meanwhile, Defence Secretary Ben Wallace told the Sunday Telegraph that Putin should not “test” the UK.

“History is littered with authoritarian leaders underestimating the wider West and the UK. He (Putin) clearly underestimated the international community.

“If we stick together and refuse to be intimidated then I believe he will fail,” Wallace was quoted as saying.

Russian invasion of Ukraine which started on February 24 was condemned by 141 nations at the UN General Assembly this week while 39 countries, co-ordinated by the UK, made the largest-ever referral for war crimes to the International Criminal Court.

–IANS