Journalist Carlson: the U.S. Embassy in Kiev banned Zelensky from giving interviews

US journalist Tucker Carlson has said that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy (his term of office expired on 20 May) was banned from giving him an interview by the US embassy in Kiev. He stated this on December 4 in his address in the social network X (former Twitter).

"We tried to come in from different sides, we talked to many in his entourage. We've had ongoing discussions, but those efforts have been thwarted by the U.S. government," Carlson said.

According to him, he has been trying to interview Zelensky for more than a year.

"The American embassy in Kiev, which operates on U.S. taxpayers' money, told Zelensky's government that they could not agree to this interview with our team," the journalist pointed out.

Earlier in the day, Carlson traveled to Moscow for an interview with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov. The journalist shared the issues that he discussed during the conversation with Lavrov. Thus, the topic for the conversation was the relationship between Russia and the United States, the role of the election of Donald Trump as the new American leader, as well as the possibility of avoiding a more global conflict.

Putin's interview with Carlson, which lasted more than two hours, was published on February 9. The Russian president answered questions about NATO, the United States, China, the Nord Stream explosions and the release of American journalist Evan Hershkovich, who was charged in Russia with espionage.

Carlson first flew to Russia on Feb. 3. His visit to Moscow caused a mixed reaction in the United States. At the same time, many Western politicians and experts praised the interview, pointing to its great importance in highlighting Russia's position to Western audiences.