Featured Image Credit: Getty
Topics: Nottingham Forest, Ukraine, Russia, Oleksandr Zinchenko
Rory O'Callaghan
Topics: Nottingham Forest, Ukraine, Russia, Oleksandr Zinchenko
Nottingham Forest owner Evangelos Marinakis has clashed with former British Prime Minster Boris Johnson in a heated debate over the war in Ukraine.
Marinakis is well known for his outspoken and sometimes controversial opinions, previously criticising Sky Sports and Gary Neville over their coverage of Forest.
His relationship with Forest head coach Nuno Espirito Santo is rumoured to have soured in recent months, with the former Wolves and Spurs boss admitting the pair are "not as close" as they once were.
Now in his latest controversial incident, Marinakis has clashed with former British PM and Conservative party leader Johnson during a debate over how to end the war in Ukraine.
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Speaking at the Fifth Thessaloniki Metropolitan Summit, Greek national Marinakis suggested Ukraine should cede territory to Russia in order to achieve peace.
"What I would prefer is for children to stop dying and let Russia keep some of this [Ukraine's] territory and stop this war. That's a fair compromise. Let's stop the war," said Marinakis.
That prompted a furious response from Johnson, who was one of Ukraine's biggest international allies during his time as PM - regularly expressing his support for its President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
Johnson fired back at Marinakis: "How much of Ukraine would you hand over?
"How much of Ukraine would be fair to hand over to the aggressor to stop the war? How much of Czechoslovakia would you have given to Hitler?"
Marinakis replied: "It is not the same."
To which Johnson replied: "It is the same! It is exactly the same! It is identical! If we are weak now, we will pay for it later on."
Marinakis' comments come just days after Forest signed Ukraine international Oleksandr Zinchenko from Arsenal.
Zinchenko started for Ukraine as they lost 2-0 to France on Friday night.
The former Manchester City star has captained his country on six occasions and has been a fierce critic of Russian president Vladimir Putin, once sending him the following message on social media: "I hope you die in the most painful way."
As many as 77,000 Ukrainian soldiers and 267,500 Russian military personnel have died since Russia began its invasion of Ukraine in 2022, according to the BBC.
The UN Human Rights Monitoring Mission in Ukraine estimate that at least 13,883 civilians, including 726 children, have died since the invasion began, while millions more have been forced to seek refuge abroad or flee their homes as a result of the conflict.