BORIS Johnson last night said nine in ten besieged Ukrainians are ready to fight to the death if invaded by Russia.
His revelation came as the US ordered 3,000 of its troops to eastern Europe.
The PM said Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky had told him any Russian invasion would result in a brutal and bloody conflict.
In a phone call yesterday, Mr Johnson also urged Moscow strongman Vladimir Putin to pull back from a catastrophic clash.
As he returned from Kiev, the PM said: “One thing we were told very clearly is that 90 per cent of Ukrainians will fight.
“They have 260,000 in their defence forces and 160,000 on contract — and they pledged this would be a fully fledged war.
“Military action really does look extremely irresponsible but they are making quite detailed preparations for an invasion.”
US President Joe Biden’s chiefs said 2,000 of its troops would be flown from North Carolina to Poland and Germany, while 1,000 more will be rushed from Germany to Romania.
Mr Putin denies he is poised to invade Ukraine but the presence of 200,000-plus troops near its borders forced the US to put boots on the ground. A Sun team on Ukraine’s northern border found troops bolstering defences in the Chernobyl nuclear disaster zone, fearing it could provide an open door to any attack on Kiev.
The UK has 200 military personnel in the country — which has a population of 44million — to assist any evacuation of Brits.
Foreign Secretary Liz Truss confirmed she plans to visit Moscow soon — but she offered “unwavering support” to Ukraine
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