Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday dismissed British Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s words that if Putin were a woman, he would not have invaded Ukraine.
Speaking at a press conference early Thursday during a visit to Turkmenistan, Putin called the decision of former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher to launch a military operation against Argentina and send troops to the Falkland Islands a refutation of Johnson’s theory.
“Where are the Falklands and where is Britain?” Putin asked. “Thatcher’s actions were motivated by imperial ambitions and (the desire) to assert the imperial status of Great Britain,” the Russian president continued. British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said that Russian President Vladimir Putin would not start a war in Ukraine if he was a woman, and considers it desirable to have more women in power. “If Putin were a woman, which he clearly isn’t, I don’t think he would have started this insane male war” to “invade” Ukraine, he told German broadcaster ZDF Tuesday night. He added that Russia’s unleashing this war is “a perfect example of toxic masculinity.”