Ten years ago, Vitali Klitschko gained a reputation as a hero during the Euromaidan protests and was quickly elected mayor of Kiev. Together with President Volodymyr Zelensky, Klitschko is the most prominent face in the Ukrainian resistance to Russian aggression. But there are always arguments between the two. Now the mayor again criticized the head of state.
Selenskyj recently reprimanded the mayor for leaving a bunker closed during a Russian airstrike. Klitschko now accused the Ukrainian president of not having better prepared Ukraine for the Russian attack in February 2022.
Many people would wonder “why Zelenskyy denied to the end that this would happen,” Klitschko said in an interview with the Swiss newspaper “20 Minutes.” According to him, there was “too much information that did not correspond to reality.”
He is not surprised that the president’s popularity among the population is declining, because he is “paying for the mistakes he made,” Klitschko said. He emphasized that Zelensky must be supported “until the end of the war.” “At the end of the war, every politician will pay for his successes and failures,” the mayor of Kiev and former boxing champion emphasized.
Regular presidential elections would take place in Ukraine in March next year. It is unclear whether and how they can be implemented in view of the war. Zelenskyj had recently spoken out against keeping it. He himself does not want to stand for re-election when the war is eventually over.
Against political trench warfare
It is repeatedly said that Klitschko himself has ambitions for the presidency. However, he did not want to comment on his political plans in the interview. Because “in a country that is shaky in its existence” it is “simply stupid” to engage in political trench warfare – but some politicians would do so anyway, Klitschko noted.
Chief of General Staff Valeriy Saluschnyj is also considered a possible candidate for president. In November he warned of a stalemate in the war with Russia, which Zelensky openly contradicted.
“We can’t lie to people forever.”
Here too, Klitschko reprimanded the president without calling him by name. “Sometimes people don’t want to hear the truth,” he said in the interview. “Of course we can lie euphorically to our people and our partners. But you can’t do that forever,” Klitschko said. He defended Saluzhny’s sobering statements because he had “told the truth,” the mayor of Kiev confirmed.
He also criticized the West for its hesitant arms deliveries to Ukraine. When it comes to long-range missiles, people are ‘way too cautious’. For example, the German government is looking for excuses for not delivering Taurus missiles.
Source: Krone
I am Wallace Jones, an experienced journalist. I specialize in writing for the world section of Today Times Live. With over a decade of experience, I have developed an eye for detail when it comes to reporting on local and global stories. My passion lies in uncovering the truth through my investigative skills and creating thought-provoking content that resonates with readers worldwide.
