Ukrainian journalist confronts Boris Johnson: 'NATO is afraid of World War III, but it is already started'

A Ukrainian journalist made an impassioned appeal to U.K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson during a press conference on Tuesday, begging him to do more to help her country while Russia invades, CNN's New Day reports.

During a question and answer segment alongside Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki, Daria Kaleniuk of the Anti-Corruption Action Centre — who said she is from Kyiv, but had recently crossed the border into Warsaw, per The Independent — tearfully told Johnson that while he and NATO fear a World War III, such a disaster had already begun for her and her countrymen.

"You are afraid," Kaleniuk said. "Because NATO is not willing to defend. Because NATO is afraid of World War III, but it is already started. And the Ukrainian children who are there [are] taking the hit."

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"You are talking about more sanctions, prime minister, but Roman Abramovich is not sanctioned," she continued, referring to the Russian billionaire owner of Premier League football club Chelsea. "He's in London, his children are not in the bombardments, his children are there in London."

According to the Independent, Kaleniuk also called for a no-fly zone, echoing Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.

Johnson reportedly replied, "I'm acutely conscious that there is not enough that we can do, as the U.K. Government, to help in the way that you want and I've got to be honest about that," per the Independent.

"The implication" of a no-fly zone, Johnson continued, "is the U.K. would be engaged in shooting down Russian planes, it would be engaged in direct combat with Russia."

"That's not something that we can do or that we've envisaged," he said. "The consequences of that would be truly very, very difficult to control."