Boris Johnson DID NOT say Modi looks for shortcuts!

Former British Prime Minister Boris Johnson recently participated in The Economic Times World Leaders Forum, which took place in Delhi on August 21 and 22. There, he spoke on several issues, including the Russia-Ukraine war, the West Asia war, and India-Britain relations.In its aftermath, a statement attributed to Johnson went viral on social media. According to one such post, “Boris Johnson has sparked controversy with remarks contrasting Jawaharlal Nehru’s foreign-policy approach with that of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The former UK PM reportedly praised Nehru’s independent stance toward Russia while criticising what he portrayed as Modi’s more cautious approach to global powers.”The post features a video clip of Johnson speaking and the following text: “Nehru had guts; Modi looks for shortcuts — Boris Johnson’s blistering attack on PM Modi’s foreign policy.” India Today Fact Check found that he neither compared Nehru and Modi nor criticised the Indian PM. During his recent India visit, however, he did speak about Nehru.OUR PROBEHad Boris Johnson really made such a comment about PM Modi, it would have made headlines in India and abroad. But we found no credible news reports about such a thing. We checked the video of the World Leaders Forum on The Economic Times YouTube channel, in which Boris Johnson was interviewed. Around 30 minutes into his talk, in response to a question related to the Russia-Ukraine war, he said:“I appreciate that India is in a particular position on this, but the more pressure we can put on Putin, the faster we can do it, the better. But, you know, I remember once — I had this conversation with your great Prime Minister many times — and I was once saying to Her Late Majesty the Queen of England how difficult it was to persuade our Indian friends firmly to come down against Russia. It was very shortly before she died. And she said, quick as a flash, Oh yes. I remember in 1952 when I was talking to Prime Minister Nehru, and he said, “Your Majesty, India will always basically be on the side of Russia. Some things never change. They just are.” We watched the entire interview and found that nowhere in it did Johnson criticise Modi or compare him to Nehru.JOHNSON PRAISED MODI IN HIS BOOKIn his 2024 memoir “Unleashed”, Boris Johnson described PM Modi as a "change maker". According to reports, he wrote that when he first met Modi, he felt an amazing energy.Thus, it is clear that the viral claim is false.- EndsPublished By: Pathikrit SanyalPublished On: Aug 27, 2026 01:02 IST