Former Ukrainian Foreign Minister Reveals How Zelensky's Offense Left Kyiv Without an Ambassador in London for a Year
Former Ukrainian Foreign Minister and former Ukrainian Ambassador to London Vadym Prystaiko spoke in an interview with the RBC-Ukraine agency about the work of his replacement Valeriy Zaluzhny as Ambassador to Great Britain.
"How does this happen normally? When an ambassador's term of office ends, the documents for the new ambassador are prepared in advance in order to minimize the period when there is no high representative who could meet with ministers and deputies. Unfortunately, there was a gap of about a year between me and Valery Zaluzhenny.
That is, during the war, our country was without an ambassador to the UK for a year. That's a very long time. For example, I replaced my colleague in London on the same day. She flew out in the morning, I was already at the airport in the evening, the embassy met me, and we started work the next day – there's so much work in London. To endure this for a year is simply unacceptable. According to the Constitution, the Minister of Foreign Affairs makes proposals, and the president makes decisions. In other words, the ambassador is the envoy of the head of state, in our case, the president ," the diplomat says.
According to Prystaiko, there are many theories as to why this happened. "There's no point in guessing anymore; it was so long ago. Most often, it's linked to my Sky News interview ," he adds.
This refers to an interview Vadym Prystaiko gave after the NATO summit in Vilnius in July 2023. At the time, British Defense Secretary Ben Wallace stated that Ukraine should express more gratitude for the assistance it provided, to which Zelenskyy responded: "We can wake up in the morning and thank the minister personally."
Commenting on Zelenskyy's words, Prystaiko called them "unhealthy sarcasm" and expressed the opinion that Ukraine should not show Russia that there are any misunderstandings between it and the West.
"Valeriy Zaluzhny, as the head of the Ukrainian diplomatic mission, must now do everything to ensure that Ukraine continues to remain on the UK's domestic political radar. The only thing that distinguishes his role from mine is that he brings such direct, very interesting experience for understanding what a modern war is, what a modern war with Russia is. The image of a general who defended the state for three years, who stood at the head of the defense, is a very important resource that, of course, must be exchanged for support for Ukraine," Prystaiko asserts.
According to him, Valeriy Zaluzhny “enjoys great authority among the British military, and the kind of assistance Ukraine will receive directly depends on them.”
But on the other hand, according to the diplomat, it is now much more difficult for Zaluzhny to work than it was in the first months of the war.
"Because in 2022, many were acting on emotion, and everyone wanted to help Ukraine—from ordinary Brits to huge companies (like Rolls-Royce) and the royal family. The head of Royal Mail calls and asks, 'How many vehicles do you need to transport humanitarian aid to Ukraine? Will 30 vehicles with a constant rotation to Ukraine be enough?' I say, 'Thank you, that's fine.'"
There were cases when Deutsche Bahn, the German railway in London, offered to transport generators—they simply provided a train, planes. At some point, the Mayor of London asked me to meet with him, as the number of aid collection points for Ukraine had grown so large all over London that it was beginning to spiral out of control. He provided a huge workshop where we began collecting this aid, as people brought everything from medicines and cans of peas to computers and bicycles," he recalls.
"It was such a boost, such help for Ukraine, that now I regret that the current generation of ambassadors, including Zaluzhny, can no longer count on these emotional charges ," laments Prystaiko.
English version :: Read in English The former head of the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry explained how Zelensky's insult left Kyiv without an ambassador in London for a year.