Before the Russian attack on Ukraine, Washington repeatedly warned of the impending danger. However, according to US President Biden, this was not heard in Kyiv. "Zelenskyj didn't want to hear that, and neither did many others," the democrat now says. The statements are not well received in Kyiv.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has ignored warnings of a Russian invasion shortly before the start of the war, according to US President Joe Biden. There was "no doubt" that Russia would "cross the border," Biden said at an event in Los Angeles on Friday. "Zelenskyj didn't want to hear that, and neither did many others."
"I know a lot of people thought I was exaggerating," he said, referring to US warnings of a possible Russian attack. However, the US government had data to support its assessment. The United States had warned against taking such a step long before Russia invaded Ukraine on February 24. At the time, the statements were met with disbelief and even criticism from some European countries. Some countries accused Washington of alarmism.
The political leadership in Kyiv reacted angrily to Biden's statements. "The phrase 'didn't want to hear' certainly needs some explanation," said Ukrainian presidential spokesman Serhiy Nykyforov. Selenskyj has repeatedly called on international partners to impose preventive sanctions in order to force Russia to withdraw troops that were already stationed in the border region with Ukraine, Nykyforov told the online newspaper Liga.net. "And here you can say that our partners 'didn't want to hear us,'" he said.
In the days leading up to the Russian invasion, Zelenskyy was publicly sensitized. "We will protect our country, with or without the support of our partners," said the President during his appearance at the Munich Security Conference on February 19. Asked about US warnings of an attack, Zelenskyy replied that Ukraine has been in a conflict with Russia for years and sees no reason to panic. He emphasized that Ukraine is not fooling itself, "we know what can happen tomorrow". But the Ukrainians were not prepared to lie down in coffins and wait for the arrival of foreign soldiers for fear of danger, Zelenskyy said at the time.
At the conference, Zelenskyj also complained that the international security architecture had become fragile and rules no longer worked. Ukraine is being forgotten by other countries, he criticized. He accused the West of having pursued a policy of appeasement for too long with regard to Russia.
