In an interview over the weekend with the New Yorker, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy voiced some of his harshest criticisms against any U.S. official since Russia’s war began when pressed about Republican vice presidential candidate Sen. JD Vance.
Zelenskyy has pointedly toed the line when it comes to the contentious 2024 U.S. presidential election and has spoken to each of President Biden, Democrat presidential nominee Vice President Harris and GOP nominee former President Trump.
But the gloves came off Sunday in an interview with the New York-based publication when Zelenskyy called Vance “radical” and warned that his proposal to bring an end to the war in Ukraine would instead prompt a “global showdown.”
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy attends a joint press conference with Ursula von der Leyen, president of the European Commission, in Kyiv, Ukraine, on Sept. 20, 2024. (Christoph Soeder, Pool Photo via AP)
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Vance said this month that if elected to the White House, Trump would work with Russia, Ukraine and European leaders to establish a “peaceful settlement” that would grant Moscow the territory it has illegally seized since its 2022 invasion.
Upon Kyiv’s agreement to gift the land to Russia, there would then be the creation of a demilitarized zone along the current front lines, Ukraine would be fortified to deter a third Russian invasion, and Kyiv would agree to give up its plans to join NATO – a proposal that Western security experts have said would be a substantial win for Russian President Vladimir Putin.
“If this were a plan, then America is headed for global conflict,” Zelenskyy said. “It would imply that whoever asserts control over territory – not the rightful owner but whoever came in a month or a week ago with a machine gun in hand – is the one who’s in charge.”
The Ukrainian president warned that this attitude would not only be costly for Kyiv and the Ukrainian people, it would jeopardize world order everywhere, including in the Middle East and wherever China threatens Western interests.
“We’ll end up in a world where might is right,” Zelenskyy said. “It will be a completely different world, a global showdown.”
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy visits the Scranton Army Ammunition Plant in Scranton, Pa., on Sept. 22, 2024. (Commonwealth Media Services/Handout via Reuters)
Despite his criticism of Vance, Zelenskyy looked to highlight that he has had a different experience in his dealings with the chief Republican candidate for president.
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“I should say that it hasn’t been like this with Trump. He and I talked on the phone, and his message was as positive as it could be from my point of view,” Zelenskyy told the New Yorker, detailing the platitudes issued by Trump like “I understand” and “I will lend support.”
Trump has drawn criticism for failing to detail what his administration would do in the way of aiding Ukraine, though he has been loudly critical of the amount of aid Washington has supplied Kyiv.
The former president has said that if elected, he will end the war between Ukraine and Russia before even taking up the top job come January 2025, though he has not explained how he will do this.
“Trump makes political statements in his election campaign,” Zelenskyy said. “My feeling is that Trump doesn’t really know how to stop the war, even if he might think he knows how.”
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy visits the Scranton Army Ammunition Plant in Scranton, Pa., on Sept. 22, 2024. (Ukrainian Presidential Press Service/Handout via Reuters)
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“With this war, oftentimes the deeper you look at it the less you understand,” Zelenskyy added.
Zelenskyy, who is in the U.S. to attend the United Nations General Assembly, said he will meet with Biden to present a “victory plan” that looks to unite the Western allies further against Russia and secure Ukraine to a greater extent.
The Ukrainian president did not detail what is in the plan, though it is expected to include calls for additional military aid and the lifting of long-range strike bans, though it could also include plans to expedite Kyiv’s accession into the EU and other such alliances.
“A strong Ukraine will force Putin to the negotiating table. I’m convinced of that,” Zelenskyy said.
There are concerns that Biden could turn down the calls for more U.S. aid to Ukraine with the presidential election just over a month and a half out.
“That’s a horrible thought. It would mean that Biden doesn’t want to end the war in any way that denies Russia a victory. And we would end up with a very long war, an impossible, exhausting situation that would kill a tremendous number of people,” he added.
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But Zelenskyy also said Ukraine is used to “living in Plan B” and he doesn’t “blame” Biden for how the war turned out.
President Biden and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy are shown after a bilateral meeting on the sidelines of the G7 summit in Fasano, Italy, on June 13, 2024. (Reuters/Kevin Lamarque)
“At the end of the day, he took a powerful, historic step when he chose to support us at the start of the war, an action that pushed our other partners to do the same,” he added.
Though Zelenskyy also warned that a diplomatic end to the war could only be accomplished if Kyiv is given what it needs to be in a position to adequately negotiate with Moscow.
“If you don’t want this war to drag on, if you do not want Putin to bury us under the corpses of his people, taking more Ukrainian lives in the process, we offer you a plan to strengthen Ukraine,” he said. “It is not a fantasy and not science fiction, and importantly, it does not require the Russians to cooperate to succeed.
“The plan spells out what our partners can do without Russia’s participation. If diplomacy is the desire of both sides, then before diplomacy can be effective, our plan’s implementation depends only on us and on our partners,” Zelenskyy added.
Vance’s campaign did not return Fox News Digital’s request for comment.
