Britain’s former prime minister, Boris Johnson and former US president Donald Trump discussed Ukraine and “the vital importance of Ukrainian victory” on Thursday, Mr Johnson’s spokesperson said on Friday.

Since being ousted as Britain’s prime minister last year, Mr Johnson has been keen to forge a profile as one of Ukraine’s most ardent backers in its fight against Russia’s full-scale invasion and has been visiting the United States this week to speak to politicians about maintaining support for Kyiv.

A spokesperson for Mr Johnson, who was once dubbed “Britain Trump” by the former president, said Mr Johnson met Mr Trump on Thursday “to discuss the situation in Ukraine and the vital importance of Ukrainian victory”. There were no further details.