A wink and a walk: Boris Johnson’s warm welcome on secret Kyiv visit

Boris Johnson embarked on his trip to Kyiv in utmost secrecy. He arrived in the Ukrainian capital on Saturday without the world's media realising he was there until footage of him strolling the streets with President Volodymyr Zelenskiy emerged.

Only after he had returned to the UK did a Downing Street spokesperson confirm he had flown to Poland and then travelled by train via Ukrainian railways.

Johnson had been reported to be "desperate" to visit Kyiv for weeks, and he made it just a day after the European Commission president, Ursula von der Leyen, and Poland's president, Andrzej Duda, and the same morning as the Austrian chancellor Karl Nehammer.

It is understood the trip to Ukraine was supposed to be kept secret until the prime minister returned to the UK, but it was announced by the Ukrainian embassy in London in mid-afternoon on Saturday in a tweet saying "Surprise" and accompanied by a winking emoji.

Once in Kyiv on Saturday, his walk around the capital took him to Independence Square and past a monument to the "Heavenly Hundred" heroes who died in pro-EU protests in 2014.

Johnson also had a meeting with Zelenskiy, sitting alone across a large desk, where he pledged armoured vehicles and anti-ship missile systems.

Appearing alongside Zelenskiy in a recorded broadcast clip, Johnson said the west would continue to "ratchet up" sanctions on Moscow as he praised the courage of the Ukrainian resistance.

"I think that the Ukrainians have shown the courage of a lion, and you Volodymyr have given the roar of that lion," he said. "The UK and others [will] supply the equipment, the technology, the knowhow, the intelligence, so that Ukraine will never be invaded again. So Ukraine is so fortified and protected - so that Ukraine can never be bullied again. Never be blackmailed again. Never be threatened in the same way again."

The latest support package represents a significant stepping up of UK military assistance to Ukraine.

Johnson appeared to receive a warm welcome from the Ukrainian public, with footage of an encounter with one Ukrainian man praising Britain's contribution to his country's war effort. A woman gave Johnson and Zelenskiy ceramic cockerels - a symbol of Ukrainian defiance since a pottery rooster remained standing on a dresser after the Russian bombardment of Borodyanka.

If there were any difficult moments in terms of security or his reception, these have not made their way into the public domain.

Zelenskiy's chief diplomatic adviser said on Sunday the visit was "very timely and very important" in terms of the war. Igor Zhovkva told Sunday Morning on BBC One that the prime minister's unannounced visit to the Ukrainian capital came at the invitation of Zelenskiy.

"Any visit that is happening now to the Ukraine is done on the invitation of the president of the Ukraine. Prime Minister Johnson received this invitation and he agreed. It might be a surprise for you but it is not a surprise for us. We were preparing for a while. This visit was very timely and very important in terms of war," he told the programme.

Photos and footage of the visit were largely provided by the Ukrainian government press office as handouts. And the UK government would not say how many advisers or official photographers from Johnson's own team had accompanied him.

The timing and means of his return are still being kept secret "for security reasons", according to No 10. But by Sunday morning the prime minister was back in the UK and working from his country residence at Chequers.