The world both within and beyond Britain's shores is still digesting the news of Boris Johnson's resignation as UK Prime Minister after a string of scandals.

Reactions so far range from the cynically dismissive to the cautiously hopeful. Johnson, 58, announced that he would step down after a slew of resignations from his top team but said he would stay on as prime minister until a replacement is found.

Here are some of the early comments, with Russian spokespeople among the first to comment.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov

"We would like to hope that some day in Great Britain more professional people who can make decisions through dialogue will come to power.....But at the moment there is little hope for that."  

"He doesn't like us, we don't like him [Johnson] either."

READ MORE

In Quotes: Calls for Johnson to resign

Robo-arm could help millions 

#MyFirstJob: How industry leaders started out 

Maria Zakharova, Russian foreign ministry spokesperson

"Boris Johnson was hit by a boomerang launched by himself....his comrades-in-arms turned him in. 

"The moral of the story is: do not seek to destroy Russia....Russia cannot be destroyed. You can break your teeth on it - and then choke on them."

Volodymyr Zelenskyy, President of Ukraine

"We all welcome this news with sadness. Not only me, but also all of Ukrainian society which sympathises with you a lot." (quote from a phone call with Johnson). 

Joe Biden, U.S. President

"The United Kingdom and the United States are the closest of friends and Allies, and the special relationship between our people remains strong and enduring."

 "I look forward to continuing our close cooperation with the government of the United Kingdom, as well as our Allies and partners around the world, on a range of important priorities. That includes maintaining a strong and united approach to supporting the people of Ukraine as they defend themselves against Putin's brutal war on their democracy, and holding Russia accountable for its actions."

Michel Barnier,  former chief EU negotiator on Brexit

Nicola Sturgeon, First Minister of Scotland

"There will be a widespread sense of relief that the chaos of the last few days (indeed months) will come to an end, though the notion of Boris Johnson staying on as PM until autumn seems far from ideal, and surely not sustainable?" said Nicola Sturgeon, Scottish First Minister.

Michelle O'Neill, Leader of Sinn Feinn in Northern Ireland

"It has been an utter absurdity that the people here have been subjected to Boris Johnson for any length of time."

Micheal Martin, prime minister of Ireland

"We now have an opportunity to return to the true spirit of partnership and mutual respect that is needed to underpin the gains of the Good Friday Agreement." (referring to a 1998 Northern Ireland peace deal).

The leadership election will take place over the summer and the victor will replace Johnson by the party's annual conference in early October, the BBC and others reported. 

"From our point of view, the political developments do not change our position on the (Northern Ireland) protocol or the way in which we work with our British counterparts on Northern Ireland," said the European Commission spokesperson.

"Our position is that we should endeavor to seek solutions as regards to the implementation of the protocol."