It became interesting when Boris Johnson, the former London mayor who built his political career on wit and the image of a lovable rogue, led the Brexit camp, and won big.
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On Wednesday, Boris Johnson was appointed the new British Foreign Secretary by Conservative Prime Minister Theresa May.
EU leaders, however, are pressuring Britain to open formal exit talks sooner – and warning that the United Kingdom can not have access to the single European market of 500 million people without accepting the free movement of EU citizens, a sticking point for many pro-Brexit Britons.
Then-London Mayor Boris Johnson brandishes a broom during a visit to meet residents in an area of the city affected by rioting in 2011.
Many remember how Johnson got stranded on a zip line over London’s Victoria Park during the Olympics in 2012.
May came to power with a reputation for acting with careful calculation, but with her choice of the voluble, publicity-craving Johnson as Britain’s representative on the world stage, she appears to have thrown her customary caution to the winds.
France’s foreign secretary, Jean-Marc Ayrault, was equally scathing. But you know very well what his style and method are. He lied a lot to the British. “Now, it’s him with his back against the wall to defend his country and to clarify his relationship with Europe”, Ayrault said.
The German foreign minister, Franz Walter Steinmeier, did not mention Mr Johnson by name but it was clear enough who he had in mind when he expressed sympathy for the misled British voter. One of the leading figures in the Brexit Leave campaign, Johnson was once seen as a possible prime minister himself, but failed to win the support of party colleagues.
In a column last December, Mr Johnson compared Vladimir Putin to Dobby the House Elf, the Harry Potter character.
Reminded of Mr Johnson’s comments, Mr Peskov said: “The weight of his current position will certainly, probably, provoke a different kind of rhetoric of a more diplomatic character”.
When it comes to U.S. Democrats and Republicans, Johnson seems an equal opportunity offender. He’s raised concerns with comments attributed to him, such as saying of the European Union’s objectives that “Napoleon, Hitler, various people tried this out, and it ends tragically”, or that Hillary Clinton looked like a “sadistic nurse in a mental hospital”. And a year ago he said: “The only reason I wouldn’t visit some parts of NY is the real risk of meeting Donald Trump”. “However we’re sure of one thing, that British-Turkish relations are more important than that and can’t be hostage to these statements”. He also made shocking remarks about Syrian dictator Bashar Assad and supportive remarks for the PKK terrorist organization.
Elsewhere the world’s media have sifted Mr Johnson’s journalistic back catalogue for undiplomatic comments.
When she was running for the Conservative leadership, May promised that “Brexit means Brexit”, and her appointments of Johnson, Davis and arch-euroskeptic Trade Secretary Liam Fox signal to European Union leaders that, no matter what her own feelings, she will not be watering down Britain’s commitment to leaving the EU. He said Johnson must first apologize to Obama and then apologize to European Union leaders for saying their plans for Europe were similar to Adolf Hitler’s.
The cheerful, extroverted Johnson has had some notable successes.
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Johnson, with his trademark blond mop of hair and penchant for buffoonery, was the most visible public face of the campaign to leave the 28-nation bloc, even touted as a prospective prime minister after his camp’s victory – that is, until a close political ally publicly betrayed him, driving him from the race.
