24 May 2018•Update: 24 May 2018
By Ahmet Gurhan Kartal
LONDON
British Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson held an 18-minute phone conversation with Russian pranksters, believing that he was on the phone with newly elected Armenian leader Nikol Pashinyan, according to local media reports.
In the sound file, which was released later by the prank callers, Johnson is heard congratulating the fake Pashinyan "very sincerely on your remarkable success".
Speaking in a Russian accent, the voice claiming to be the Armenian leader asks advice on how to deal with Russia’s president and for information on the March 4 Salisbury nerve agent attack.
Audio of the full prank call was released Thursday on a YouTube channel belonging to the pranksters known as Vovan and Lexus.
"You can definitely count on the U.K. and I admire your vision and what you're trying to achieve," Johnson is heard saying.
Johnson said "obviously we had hoped to have better relations... than we currently do."
"I'm afraid that Russia seems to be unable to resist malign activity of one kind or another,” he said.
The prankster said he "hoped he [Vladimir Putin] will not poison me with Novichok," referring to the nerve agent the U.K. says used in the poisoning of Sergei and Yulia Skripal.
"The only thing the Russians respond to is determination and firmness," Johnson also said.
'Childish actions'
The British Foreign Office later said in a statement that Johnson “realized it was a hoax, and ended the call.”
“We checked it out and knew immediately it was a prank call,” it said.
“The use of chemical weapons in Salisbury and Syria, and recent events in Armenia, are serious matters. These childish actions show the lack of seriousness of the caller and those behind him.”
The statement did not say when the call was made but it is thought to have been recorded on May 14, as the real leader of Armenia was to hold a meeting with the Russian president that day.
