A pro-Putin oligarch taunted Mr Johnson as a “dumb clown” who finally got his due for helping send weapons to Ukraine. The Kremlin said it hoped “more professional” people would come to power Britain after the prime minister’s resignation
However, Vladimir Putin’s spokesman, Dmitry Peskov, admitted that Johnson “really doesn’t” love Russia.
He said: “We hope that one day more professional people come to power in Britain who can make decisions through dialogue.
“He really doesn’t like us. And we don’t like him either.”
Billionaire Oleg Deripaska said it was a “glorious ending” for a “dumb clown”.
Anglo-Russian relations have been deteriorating for years, especially after the Salisbury poisonings in 2018, but have completely collapsed after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February.
The Ukrainian response, however, was more positive: an adviser to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky praised Johnson for standing up to “Russian evil”.
Mikhailo Podolyak wrote on Twitter paying tribute to the former mayor of London for his support of Ukraine and his visits to Kiev.
He said: “To be a leader is to call Russia bad and take responsibility at the most critical moments.
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He said: “Of course there will be disappointment. It’s not about UK support. People understand that it will last.
“But the sense of personal commitment that Boris carries, and his personal sympathy for Ukraine will leave.
“The second point, which is politically important to us, is this: of course the UK support would be there and I don’t expect this support to diminish.
“But Boris, because of his emotion, because of his view of the situation, stood and stands for the others.
“He led the West on so many occasions, politically as well as emotionally.
“Whether a new British leader will emotionally lead the West in Ukraine, or whether she or he will play more of some sort of partnership with the US, is an open question.
“Such a person with emotional involvement means a lot.”