Ukrainian President VolodymyrZelenskiy on Friday (28 Jan) did not rule out a full-blown war with Russia, but said Ukraine was not a sinking Titanic and accused Washington and the media of fueling panic that weighed on the economy while there were “no tanks in the streets”.
He spoke after Russian President Vladimir Putin said the United States and NATO had not addressed the Kremlin’s main security demands in the East-West standoff over Ukraine, but that Moscow was ready to keep talking.
Speaking at a news conference for foreign media, Zelenskiy said the White House was making a “mistake” in highlighting excessively the risk of a large-scale war, and that this was the message he gave U.S. President Joe Biden in their phone call on Thursday.
While he said Russia was trying to intimidate and destabilize Ukraine, Kyiv was propping up its hryvnia currency with FX reserves, as well as seeking military, political and economic support from the West.
He also said the country needed 4-5 billion dollars to stabilize its economy, including through foreign investments, welcoming a 1.2 billion euros aid package from the European Union.
Additionally, Zelenskiy said Russia should prove that it was not seeking a war with Ukraine by agreeing to an exchange of prisoners. However, he said the most immediate risk for his country was chaos within, from cyber-attacks to an economic crisis.
He also criticized Germany for pursuing the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline, accusing it of prioritizing business deals with Russia over Ukraine’s security and territorial integrity.
Zelenskiy further named Britain among countries allowing money laundering by Russians, as well as by oligarchs siphoning money from countries including Ukraine and Kazakhstan. (NNT)
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