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- 鈥業nstinct of the people of this country, like the people of Ukraine, to choose freedom every time鈥�
- UK leader cites the Brexit referendum in June 2016 as a 鈥榝amous recent example鈥�
LONDON: British Prime Minister Boris Johnson found himself under fire on Sunday, including from his own MPs, after saying that Brexit showed that Britons shared the same 鈥渋nstinct鈥� for freedom as Ukrainians.
In a speech to his Conservative Party conference in Blackpool, northern England, on Saturday, Johnson said it was 鈥渢he instinct of the people of this country, like the people of Ukraine, to choose freedom every time.鈥�
He cited the Brexit referendum in June 2016 as a 鈥渇amous recent example.鈥�
鈥淲hen the British people voted for Brexit in such large, large numbers, I don鈥檛 believe it was because they were remotely hostile to foreigners. It鈥檚 because they wanted to be free to do things differently and for this country to be able to run itself,鈥� he said.
He also cited Britain鈥檚 vaccine rollout as an example of people鈥檚 desire to get their freedoms back.
European Council President Donald Tusk said on Twitter: 鈥淏oris, your words offend Ukrainians, the British and common sense.鈥�
Former EU negotiator Guy Verhofstadt called the comments 鈥渋nsane.鈥�
Liberal Democrat leader, Ed Davey, said Johnson was 鈥渘eedlessly creating division.
鈥淭o compare a referendum to women and children fleeing Putin鈥檚 bombs is an insult to every Ukrainian,鈥� he added.
Finance minister Rishi Sunak said on Sky News on Sunday that he did not consider the two situations comparable.
鈥淐learly they are not directly analogous and I don鈥檛 think the Prime Minister was saying that they were directly analogous either,鈥� he said.