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Shop NowIt has been a week of embarrassment and fallout following the angry tweet from Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky haranguing NATO allies during the Vilnius summit.
He had released his tweet complaining that Ukraine deserves more “respect” from its NATO partners, in response to their ‘weak’ and ‘absurd’ reluctance to issue Kiev guarantees on NATO membership.
This nearly backfired as it was part of an effort to pressure decision-makers on the path to membership as reported by The Washington Post.
Even worse, Zelensky went so far as to lash out at the UK while speaking with reporters at the summit.
We value our allies. We value our shared security. And we always appreciate an open conversation.
Ukraine will be represented at the NATO summit in Vilnius. Because it is about respect.But Ukraine also deserves respect. Now, on the way to Vilnius, we received signals that…
— Володимир Зеленський (@ZelenskyyUa) July 11, 2023
The episode created friction amongst Western allies and unleashed rare criticism from within Zelensky’s own government.
Ukraine’s ambassador Vadym Prystaiko was interviewed by Sky News over the fallout, where he agreed with another commentator that Zelensky’s remarks contained “a little bit of sarcasm” directed at British Minister Wallace.
The diplomat voiced his concerns saying that this kind of attitude was unhealthy and not beneficial for relations between Russia and Ukraine.
He also offered a solution, suggesting that if anything were to happen then Ben could call him directly and express his grievances.
Unfortunately Prystaiko suffered consequences for these words as he was fired from his post without any official reason given for removal other than possibly disagreeing with Zelensky in public view.
🇺🇦🇬🇧 #BREAKING: Volodymyr #Zelensky has fired the ambassador to the #UK, Vadym Prystayko, after he called the Ukrainian president's words to #British Defense Minister Ben #Wallace as unhealthy sarcasm#Ukraine #UkraineRussianWar #BreakingNews pic.twitter.com/F01YwUuRmU
— Attentive Media (@AttentiveCEE) July 21, 2023
It appears clear now all too late what Prystaiko tried to caution against: that there should be no discord between those countries who have banded together in pursuit of common goals such as peace in Europe.
