Britain's Prime Minister Theresa May sent yet more shockwaves on Wednesday after she appointed Boris Johnson — the gaffe-prone former Mayor of London — as the country's new Foreign Secretary.

Stefan Rousseau / PA WIRE

His new role didn't just cause surprise in the U.K.

Here is the exact moment U.S. State Department spokesman Mark Toner was informed about Johnson's new job:

CSPAN

The reaction elsewhere has ranged from to anger to bemusement. Senior diplomat and former Swedish Prime Minister Carl Bildt had this to say:

Foreign Ministers from some of Britain's European neighbors have not been holding back either, particularly following Johnson's prominent role in campaigning to leave the EU.

"I need a partner with whom I can negotiate and who is clear, credible and reliable," he added.

However, sections of the German and French media have been slightly kinder to him, even if some of their compliments were backhanded.

A piece in Germany's Die Welt said that while Johnson was a "disloyal jack of all trades," he is not "the absurd choice," adding that pro-Remain Theresa May had "incapacitated her anti-EU critics by making them accountable. Now Brexit advocates must ensure that the exit succeeds."

Meanwhile, Pierre Jova of French conservative newspaper Le Figaro said that Johnson has a "clown image" and is "a pure product of British conservative aristocracy and raised to govern."

In Turkey, the pro-government paper Sabah expressed concern over Johnson's previous statements in support of Kurdish PKK rebels fighting the Turkish state, and for Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. The piece also said that his appointment "raises questions about the future of Britain's relations with others."

Johnson once wrote a poem in which he described President Tayyip Recep Erdogan as a "wankerer" who performed a sex act on a goat.

But senior figures in the Kurdish Regional Government welcomed his appointment. Here's what the deputy prime minister tweeted:

Johnson's appointment, meanwhile was big news in Iran, following a 2006 piece he wrote in favor of the country's right to acquire nuclear weapons.

State-run media in Russia also seemed to be slightly more positive about his appointment, as one channel describing him as "one of the most charismatic politicians in modern Britain," according to BBC Monitoring.

However, another channel spoke of his "behavior which sometimes steps over the bounds of diplomatic etiquette."

Johnson has previously praised Vladimir Putin in his articles.

LINK: Here's A Short List Of Times Britain's New Foreign Secretary Was The Best Diplomat Ever

LINK: Boris Johnson Is Foreign Secretary, And German People Are Pissing Themselves

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