Zelenskyy’s US visit sign Ukraine not ready for peace – Russian Ambassador

Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensyy’s visit to the US shows that neither Ukraine nor the US is ready for peace, Russia’s Ambassador to the US Anatoly Antonov said.

“Zelenskyy’s visit here and his talks in Washington showed that neither the administration nor Kyiv are ready for peace. Both chose war, the death of rank-and-fire soldiers is binding the Ukrainian regime even more tightly to US interests,” he said in an interview with the Russian News Agency on Friday.

He described Mr Zelenskyy’s first trip to the US, Ukraine’s biggest ally in the ongoing war, as a theatrical show.

“The Ukrainian president had his part to play. He demonstrated servility, loyalty and readiness to continue pitting the Ukrainian and Russian people against each other,” Mr Antonov said.

Mr Zelenskyy on Wednesday tweeted he was off to the US to strengthen resilience and defence capabilities for Ukraine. He spoke to the US congress where he was lauded for delivering a great speech.

However, Russia believes he came to beg for handouts of money and weapons.

“He kept speaking about his commitment to democratic ideals and willingness to subordinate the interests of his country to Washington’s policies,” Mr Antonov said.

He also reiterated the allegation that the US is fighting a proxy war against Russia through Ukraine.

“Today, nobody is hiding the White House’s true goals regarding us. Political commentators on all TV channels say that the US proxy war against the Russian Federation must be intensified. Let me remind the audience that proxy wars are fought with someone else’s hands,” he added.

According to Mr Antonov, Russia will not retreat in the ongoing ‘denazification’ of Ukraine, an excuse Russia has used to justify the invasion of its smaller neighbour.

“We can only move forward. If we leave the roots of Nazism on Ukrainian soil, it will sprout again after some time and we will have to fight tooth and nail again to rid Ukraine and the entire world of this plague,” he explained.

He noted that Russia has had many discussions with its American counterparts about the dangers of getting involved in the Ukrainian conflict and has warned a dozen times about the harmful effects of prodding the Ukrainian military.

“We have been trying to drive the message home, to have politicians realise with their hearts and minds that there was no chance of reconciling oneself with the death of people killed in Odessa’s Trade Unions House, the shooting of unarmed prisoners of war and with daily slaughter of Russians in Donbass and Luhansk and in other regions that have reunited with us,” the Russian diplomat said.

It seems that Washington is testing our strength, Mr Antonov said, recounting that the US started delivering small arms a few years ago and has now moved to the Patriot missile systems.

The Russian diplomat remarked that the military aid from the US to Ukraine is enormous adding that the monies being sent to Ukraine would be better off meeting the peaceful needs of countries in Africa, Latin America, the Middle East and Asia.

Quoting Politico’s report which said up to 90 troops are needed to service the Patriot system. He asked rhetorically, who are these people?

“Clearly, Ukraine does not have such specialists and it will take a long time to train them. Will it be Americans or, perhaps, citizens of other NATO countries? It would be nice to get a straightforward answer,” he noted.

Mr Antonov also told TASS that they had tried to get the White House and the Department of State to understand that all US systems, primarily the Patriot ones, would become legitimate targets for Russia’s military.

“What if Americans get killed? What if they are among the crews? How would Washington react? What is that if not proof of the administration’s direct involvement in the current conflict? What other evidence is required to confirm this assertion, which, by the way, government agencies here dislike so much?” he asked again.

However, Mr Antonov noted that there were Americans who want peace and offer proposals on how to resolve the situation – albeit, with serious flaws, citing the example of Henry Kissinger, former US Secretary of State.

Citing Mr Kissinger’s proposal for a dialogue with Russia, Mr Antonov said that itself is drowned out in a sea of Russophobia.

“Our diplomats in the United States seek to use every chance to clarify Russia’s position. We emphasise the high risk of a clash between the two great powers. We will keep working toward a situation where Russia’s security concerns will not be ignored, but be heard with the prospect of working together to resolve them,” he said.