Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has not yet talked directly with the 46th US President Joe Biden, since a "platform" must be prepared for negotiations.

This was stated by the press secretary of the Ukrainian leader Yulia Mendel in an interview with Ukrainian journalist Ales Batsman.

“Talking is good.

And for there to be action, a platform needs to be prepared for this, ”she said.

At the same time, Mendel added that Joe Biden "also has a penchant for performance, like Vladimir Zelensky."

“We will have very effective and strong negotiations.

And here we are not just talking about a call.

It's just that a platform needs to be well prepared for this, ”the representative of the Ukrainian president stressed.

According to Mendel, few people pay attention to the fact that Biden has not yet "formed his administration."

"That is, there (in the White House. -

RT

) there weren't many people to contact," she added.

  • Press Secretary of the President of Ukraine Yulia Mendel

  • globallookpress.com

  • © Yuliya Ovsyannikova

Nevertheless, Zelensky's office has already established contacts with the press service of the White House, Mendel explained.

“Contacts are constantly taking place at a certain level, and there is absolutely no negative in this.

I think very soon there will be a situation when we realize that everything is fine with the United States.

Indeed, a lot of work is being done between diplomats and different services.

There was an exchange of letters from the presidents.

And there were quite clear messages that showed what was happening, ”explained the representative of Zelensky.

Cause for concern

Earlier, Zelensky himself said that he did not feel any tension in relations with the American side, despite the absence of personal negotiations with the head of the White House.

The politician noted that contacts with the Biden administration are at the level of the heads of foreign affairs agencies.

“Foreign Minister Kuleba had a conversation with Mr. Blinken.

I know about its detailed content.

In accordance with this conversation, no one feels any tension or confirms.

On the contrary, the support from our strategic partner is confirmed.

So far, so, "Zelensky said during a briefing, answering journalists' questions.

In early February, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmitry Kuleba said that the date of the telephone conversation between the presidents of Ukraine and the United States has not yet been determined, since the American leader is "very focused" on other issues.

  • Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmitry Kuleba

"If you do not look for conspiracy theories, but simply follow American politics, it is clear that President Biden is now focused on domestic American issues and the number of his contacts with world leaders is very limited," Kuleba said.

According to experts, there is serious concern behind the optimistic statements of the Ukrainian leadership.

“Considering that the Ukrainian political system depends on the support of Western partners, the lack of direct dialogue between leaders negatively affects the authority of the Ukrainian government within the country.

If it turns out that Zelenskiy does not have good ties with the White House, then this may prompt his opponents to begin a new process of changing power.

So far, the situation is far from this, since little time has passed since Biden's inauguration, but there is already a hint of problems, "said Ruslan Bortnik, director of the Ukrainian Institute for Policy Analysis and Management, in a commentary on RT.

A similar point of view is shared by Vladimir Zharikhin, Deputy Director of the Institute of CIS Countries.

“Zelenskiy’s office is feeling uneasy about this issue.

And there are grounds for it, since Biden could talk to his Ukrainian counterpart on the phone, but he did not, ”the expert explained in an interview with RT.

An RT source in the Servant of the People party Zelensky confirmed that so far the president's office has not been able to establish direct contact with the Joe Biden administration.

“I think that this is a clear signal from Washington to the leadership of Ukraine - it is necessary to fulfill the requirements of Western partners, otherwise they will prepare a new candidate for the head of state.

And Zelensky will not only not be given any loans, but they will not talk, ”the source said.

According to him, Zelensky's decision to close opposition television channels was also related to the position of the new American administration.

Between two fires

Back in December 2020, Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced that he hoped for the help of the elected US President Joe Biden in resolving the Donbas conflict.

“It seems to me that Joe Biden knows Ukraine better than the previous president,” Zelenskiy said at the time in an interview with The New York Times.

The Ukrainian leader recalled that even before participating in the presidential campaign, Joe Biden had close ties with Ukraine and he "understands Russians well and understands the difference between Ukraine and Russia."

According to Zelensky, this will help resolve the conflict in Donbass and "end the occupation" of Ukrainian territory.

For example, the Ukrainian leadership would welcome the entry of the US President into the Normandy format, since Biden "well understands the issue of Ukraine and Russia."

This was also stated then by Vladimir Zelensky.

  • House in the village of Vesyoloye, damaged during the hostilities in the DPR

  • RIA News

  • © Sergey Averin

Indeed, during the election campaign, US Democratic candidate Joe Biden promised that if he wins, "he will make it clear to the Kremlin that it must end its aggression and occupation of Ukraine."

"The Biden-Harris administration will ensure that Ukraine receives the necessary economic and military support, including lethal weapons," Biden's campaign website said.

The 46th head of the White House is well acquainted with Ukrainian politics, since, as vice president in the Barack Obama administration, he was in charge of the Ukrainian direction.

Biden was involved in the events of early 2014 in Ukraine - it was he who called on Viktor Yanukovych to show restraint towards the protesters in Kiev, and also demanded that special forces be removed from the streets of the Ukrainian capital.

Subsequently, the politician maintained close ties with the new authorities of Ukraine.

For example, it was he who insisted on the dismissal of the Ukrainian Prosecutor General Viktor Shokin.

Biden himself told about this later - according to his version, Shokin's resignation was dictated by anti-corruption motives.

To force the Ukrainian leadership to fire the prosecutor general, Biden threatened to freeze a large loan to the country.

However, in 2019, this story began to play with new colors: shortly before Biden announced his participation in the presidential race, The Hill newspaper published an article claiming that other motives were behind Shokin's dismissal.

Allegedly, the reason was the Attorney General's plans to open an investigation due to the participation of the son of the American Vice President Hunter Biden in corruption schemes.

In 2014, Biden Jr. joined the board of directors of Burisma, an energy company operating in Ukraine.

According to media reports, the Ukrainian Prosecutor General's Office suspected him of accepting a bribe from the company's management.

Donald Trump has repeatedly accused his rival of involvement in corruption during the election campaign.

The politician even wanted the Ukrainian leadership to open an investigation against the Biden family.

However, this did not happen - Vladimir Zelensky chose not to play along with any of the rivals.

“My approach was and remains the same - to prevent the involvement of Ukraine or any of the Ukrainians in the political situation in the United States.

They have their own country, and they themselves decide what to do with it.

I don’t want them to involve us in any business related to their internal politics, ”Zelensky said in an interview with The Times of Israel.

However, despite this, relations between Zelensky and the new administration of the White House are still not easy, experts say.

“Zelensky tried to remain neutral during the fight between Biden and Trump.

However, since the Obama-Biden team stood at the origins of the current Ukrainian state, the 46th head of the White House counted on greater loyalty from Kiev, ”said Vladimir Zharikhin.

Political casting

In early March, the United States imposed sanctions on the Ukrainian oligarch Igor Kolomoisky, accusing him of corruption while serving as head of the Dnipropetrovsk region administration in 2014-2015.

According to the American authorities, the businessman was involved in actions that undermined the rule of law.

At the same time, the Ukrainian media more than once linked the person of Kolomoisky with Volodymyr Zelensky, calling the oligarch the unofficial patron of the politician.

As Vladimir Zharikhin explained, although recently Zelensky practically did not rely on the oligarch, a significant part of the faction of his party in the Rada is represented by Kolomoisky's people.

  • Igor Kolomoisky

  • AFP

  • © Vladislav Musienko / UNIAN

“The US sanctions against Kolomoisky showed that the United States will independently appoint as corrupt in Ukraine those whom it considers necessary.

And this gesture also became a “click on the nose” of Zelensky, ”the expert said.

According to a RT source in the European Solidarity party, the United States imposed sanctions against Igor Kolomoisky with one goal - to further weaken the oligarch's influence on the president of Ukraine.

“Then Zelensky will have no opportunity at all to ignore the demands of partners who give direct instructions to Kiev.

I will not reveal a secret, but Joseph Biden and Petro Poroshenko have friendly relations, and this can also affect the relationship between the White House and Zelensky.

Moreover, Poroshenko does not hide his readiness to return to the political Olympus, ”the source explained.

Ruslan Bortnik, in turn, is confident that the very absence of direct negotiations with Zelensky is already a form of pressure from the new American administration on Kiev.

“This can also be seen as a manifestation of dissatisfaction with the speed of reforms, as well as the role of oligarchs in Ukrainian politics.

And also as a sign to Zelensky that he should reassess his personnel policy and be more sensitive to the wishes of Western partners, ”the expert noted.

From the point of view of Vladimir Zharikhin, the coldness of the American administration is due to the fact that the White House is considering the possibility of replacing Zelensky with another political figure.

“We can say that now there is a casting in place of Zelensky.

Kiev feels it, worries and is trying to force contacts with the White House.

This is necessary in order to receive minimal signs of attention from the United States - in a way, the recognition of Zelensky by Joe Biden's team as a political subject, ”the expert summed up.