Pivotal conversations between David Cameron and Boris Johnson

David Cameron, the British prime minister who called the Brexit referendum, says in a new memoir that Boris Johnson, Britain’s current leader, embraced withdrawing from the European Union only when he sensed it would help his political career.

With his memoir, “For the Record,” Mr. Cameron breaks his years of relative silence since stepping down, offering at once a public apology — saying he “failed” in his approach — and a personal defense.

Some observers blamed him for the chaos and criticized the decision to release the book.

From the memoir: On a tennis court, Mr. Cameron tried to dissuade Mr. Johnson from joining the campaign to leave the E.U., even offering him a top job in his cabinet. But Mr. Johnson did not relent. It set the stage for events that would ultimately end the political career of one and catapult the other into Downing Street.