Former UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson has urged the UK to deploy non-combat troops to Ukraine immediately, arguing that it could “flip a switch” in Russian President Vladimir Putin’s thinking.

Axar.az, citing The Independent, reports that Johnson, speaking alongside former military chief Adm Sir Tony Radakin, criticized Ukraine’s allies for being “too slow” in providing support and said timely deployment would advantage Ukraine while pressuring Putin:

“We've always delayed needlessly… the one person who suffers from escalation is Putin.”

The call comes amid tensions over the Druzhba pipeline, where Hungary has threatened to block an EU loan to Ukraine unless Kyiv allows Russian oil shipments to resume following damage from a Russian drone attack on January 27. Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto accused Ukraine of “blackmailing” Hungary by failing to restore the oil flow.