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UK foreign secretary: War could be beginning of the end for Putin

27 February 2022 13:32 (UTC +04:00)

The Russian military assault on Ukraine "could well be the beginning of the end" for President Vladimir Putin, UK Foreign Secretary Lizz Truss has said, APA reports citing BBC.

Speaking to the Trevor Phillips programme on Sky News, Truss said "we are seeing strong and brave Ukrainian resistance" and the UK would "continue to supply them with weapons and economic support".

She said she believed Putin was "making a strategic mistake" given the damage western sanctions would do to the Russian economy.

But she suggested the war could drag on for "a number of years", adding: "This is not going to be - I fear - over quickly."

"I fear this conflict could be very very bloody," she said.

When asked about UK sanctions, Truss said she had "compiled a hit list of oligarchs" and suggested there would be "a rolling programme of sanctions".

The war in Ukraine will inflict an "economic cost" on the UK, she said. But, she said, the British people will understand the price we would pay if we don't stand up to Putin now.

Truss will be interviewed by Sophie Raworth on the BBC's Sunday Morning programme within the next few minutes.