There has continued to be fallout and embarrassment in the wake of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky’s angry tweet haranguing NATO allies during the Vilnius summit of last week. As we detailed, he threw a tantrum over NATO leaders’ ‘weak’ and ‘absurd’ reluctance to issue Kiev guarantees on NATO membership. He had complained that his country deserves more “respect” and that…
It’s unprecedented and absurd when time frame is not set neither for the invitation nor for Ukraine’s membership. While at the same time vague wording about “conditions” is added even for inviting Ukraine.
The Washington Post had in follow-up noted that this nearly backfired, given it was also a calculated effort to pressure NATO decision-makers to firmly declare a path to membership. Zelensky elsewhere lashed out at the UK while speaking to 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
Commenting on the negative impact the tweet had on policymakers gathered at the July 11-12 summit, the WaPo report suggested it nearly made NATO officials water down language on Ukraine’s eventual accession even further…
Three other senior policymakers, however, two of whom were direct participants in the talks, said their strong perception was that the United States was getting ready to water down the document’s language — to make it less welcoming to a speedy Ukrainian accession to the alliance.
“Some wanted to withdraw the reference to ‘invitation,’” or find another place to put that word, said one of the senior policymakers, a NATO diplomat who took part in the talks.
But the whole episode not only created friction among the Western allies, it unleashed rare criticism aimed at Zelensky from within his own government.
Ukraine’s ambassador to the United Kingdom, Vadym Prystaiko, had taken aim at some of Zelensky’s comments at Vilnius, in particular the following prior press remarks:
Read More: Zelensky Fires His Ambassador To UK Over Slight Criticism
