Russia’s Lavrov Says Britain Should Drop 'Great' From Its Name

Last Updated:January 20, 2026, 23:09 IST

Lavrov made the comments while speaking about colonialism, following remarks on Greenland.

Russia's Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov (Image Credit: Reuters)

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov on Tuesday suggested that Britain should no longer be called Great Britain, arguing that it is the only country in the world to officially name itself “Great."

Lavrov made the comments while speaking about colonialism, following remarks on Greenland, which has been in the news amid US President Donald Trump’s repeated threats to seize the Arctic island.

“I think that Britain should be called simply Britain because ‘Great Britain’ is the only example of a country which calls itself “Great"," Lavrov told reporters.

When a correspondent from Britain’s Sky News asked a question, Lavrov added, “No offence," signalling that his remarks were intended lightly.

Lavrov cited another historical example of a country calling itself “great" – the Great Socialist People’s Libyan Arab Jamahiriya, led by Muammar Gaddafi. “But it no longer exists," he said.

In Russian, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is usually referred to as “Velikobritaniya," which translates as Great Britain.

Lavrov’s comments come amid tense relations between Russia and the West, with Britain often portrayed as a major adversary in Russian media.

On Russian state television, the UK is frequently referred to as “Perfidious Albion," described as a scheming global intelligence power meddling from Washington to Iran in attempts to undermine Russian interests.

Relations between Russia and the UK are already strained over the war in Ukraine. Britain has labelled Russia a threat to Europe, while both sides have accused each other of running espionage campaigns not seen since the Cold War.

(With inputs from Reuters)

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