President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine would not rule out an overblown conflict with Russia on Friday but claimed his nation was not a sinking Titanic and blamed Washington and the media of instilling fear in the economy despite "no tanks in the streets."
He commented after Russian President Vladimir Putin said the US and NATO had failed to meet the Kremlin's fundamental security concerns in the Ukraine standoff, but that Moscow was willing to keep negotiating.
West's exaggeration with Ukraine-Russia issue is a "mistake"
Per SCMP, Zelensky claimed the White House was making a "mistake" by exaggerating the potential of a large-scale conflict, and that he conveyed this warning to US President Joe Biden during their phone call on Thursday.
While he claimed that Russia was attempting to frighten and destabilize Ukraine, he also claimed that Kyiv was bolstering its hryvnia currency with foreign exchange reserves and sought military, diplomatic, and economic assistance from the West.
He said the nation required $4 billion to $5 billion in foreign investments to restore its economy, and he welcomed a US$1.34 billion aid package from the European Union. By consenting to a prisoner swap, Zelensky believes Russia can demonstrate that it is not pursuing a confrontation with Ukraine. However, he stated that the biggest urgent threat to his country was internal disorder, ranging from cyberattacks to an economic downturn.
He said that NATO was the only guarantee of hard security Ukraine has in its standoff with Russia but warned that the military alliance's eastern members may be subjected to Moscow's unfriendly actions.
He chastised Germany for promoting the Nord Stream 2 gas project, accusing it of putting Russia's financial interests ahead of Ukraine's security and territorial integrity. He also mentioned Britain as one of the nations that allows Russians and billionaires to launder money from countries like Ukraine and Kazakhstan.
Ukraine denies dispute over phone call with US
Kyiv has denied that President Joe Biden and his Ukrainian colleague Volodymyr Zelensky had a tense phone conversation on Thursday. A CNN report citing an anonymous Kyiv source said the leaders disagreed on the possibility of a Moscow-led strike on Ukraine, which was widely reported in Ukraine and Russia.
The person told the network that Biden had informed Zelensky that a Russian invasion was "almost probable" after the ground froze in late February, according to the network.
According to CNN, Zelensky reiterated Kyiv's position that Russia's threat remains "dangerous but ambiguous" in a call that did not go well, according to the official. However, Zelensky's spokesman, Sergii Nykyforov, said in a statement shared on social media that the official's comments "are absolutely not true."
What truly transpired at the discussion "is only contained in official papers from the Ukrainian and American parties," he said on Facebook.
As foreign leaders warn about the threat presented by Russian forces massed in Ukraine, the Kyiv administration is concerned about the impact on the economy and public morale of categorical remarks about the certainty of a Moscow-led invasion. While there is a serious fear of invasion, Kyiv claims it is no more so than in prior months.
Emily Horne, a spokeswoman for the National Security Council, disputed the senior Ukrainian official's account of the call, telling CNN that anonymous sources are leaking falsehoods. Horne also claimed that Biden has been warning for months that Moscow-led forces could invade Ukraine in February, as per Newsweek via MSN.
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