Russian President Vladimir Putin would not have started the war in Ukraine if he was a woman, according to British Prime Minister Boris Johnson.

“If Putin was a woman, which he obviously isn’t, but if he were, I really don’t think he would’ve embarked on a crazy, macho war of invasion and violence in the way that he has,” Johnson told German broadcaster ZDF on Tuesday evening.

Putin’s invasion of Ukraine is “a perfect example of toxic masculinity,” he said, calling for better education for girls around the world and for “more women in positions of power.”
The British Prime Minister acknowledged that “of course people want the war to end,” but for the moment “there’s no deal available. Putin isn’t making an offer of peace.”

Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday rejected British Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s charge that if he were a woman he would not have invaded Ukraine.

Speaking at a news conference in the early hours of Thursday during a visit to Turkmenistan, Putin pointed to former British leader Margaret Thatcher’s decision to send troops into the Falklands as a rebuttal of Johnson’s theory.

Johnson on Wednesday dubbed Putin’s decision to launch what Moscow calls a “special military operation” against Ukraine a “perfect example of toxic masculinity” and mocked Putin’s macho posturing.