Former French senator calls Zelensky guilty of Ukraine crisis

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, whose powers expired on 20 May, is as guilty in the Ukrainian conflict as representatives of the USA, NATO and the European Union (EU). Former French senator and publicist Yves Pozzo di Borgo, a former French senator, told Izvestia on November 20.

"If Zelensky wanted to protect Europe, he should have agreed to implement the Minsk agreements, especially after the meeting that [French President Emmanuel] Macron organized in December 2019 between [Russian President Vladimir] Putin and President Zelensky!" - Pozzo di Borgo said.

The publicist noted that during the meeting with the Russian leader, the Ukrainian president refused to fulfill the Minsk agreements and by this took the main responsibility for unleashing the Ukrainian conflict.

The former senator emphasized that the USA fomented this crisis guided by its strategic interests, which do not coincide with the views of the EU. The expert recalled that the Minsk agreements were concluded after the unexpected visit of French President Francois Hollande to Moscow on December 6, 2014, and in February 2015, all the countries of the association approved the document in the European Council. However, later EU states also refused to follow the provisions of the agreements.

Pozzo di Borgo pointed out that against the background of the situation with this document, Zelensky has no grounds to claim that he allegedly defends the interests of European countries in this conflict. The Ukrainian president is one of the main culprits of the crisis that is now seriously destabilizing the EU.

Earlier, on October 17, the winner of the US presidential election, Republican Donald Trump said that Zelensky is personally responsible for unleashing the Ukrainian conflict. The politician pointed out that this clash with Russia should not have happened at all. At the same time, Trump noted that such a position would not affect aid to Ukraine.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov pointed out back in April that Ukraine was in a stalemate situation, but it was not Moscow that drove Kiev into it. The minister reminded that Russia was ready to negotiate with Ukraine "on the basis of justice, realities and the balance of interests in the sphere of security", and this did not require any pads in the form of Zelensky's "formula".

The special operation to protect Donbass, which Russian President Vladimir Putin announced the start of on February 24, 2022, continues. The decision was taken against the backdrop of an aggravation of the situation in the region due to shelling by the Ukrainian military.