Zelensky dismisses Putin like no other but hails special bond with Johnson

Mr Zelensky, who turned 45 on Wednesday, also hailed his special bond with Boris Johnson but declined to say whether he would like to see him return as prime minister one day.

In an interview with Sky News, Mr Zelensky described the Russian president as a man who said one thing and then did another because he said he was not interested in meeting him.

Speaking in English, he said: It’s not interesting to me. Not interesting to meet, not interesting to talk to. Why? Because we encountered it in the Normandy format, that was before the full-scale invasion.

I saw the man who said one thing and did another. So for me, I can’t understand, is it his decisions or someone else? So to answer what to shake hands? Not interesting. To speak? I really don’t understand who makes the decisions in Russia.

When asked if it was too late for one-on-one talks with Mr. Putin to prove useful in resolving the war, Mr. Zelensky replied: Too late, not interesting. Who is he now? After a full-scale invasion, to me he is nobody.

The interview also saw the warlord asked about his relationship with Mr Johnson, who after last year’s invasion quickly became one of Ukraine’s most vocal supporters on the world stage .

Since leaving Downing Street, he has continued to offer Mr Zelensky his wholehearted support and has called on Western allies to arm Ukraine with the resources it needs to help end the war.

Mr Zelensky declined to say whether Mr Johnson should get an official role representing the UK on Ukraine, appearing to laugh at the suggestion and indicating the former PM may not be ready for such a role.

He’s a good guy, he said. Who knows? With pleasure, with pleasure, really.

But he declined to say whether he would like to see Mr Johnson enter Downing Street again, instead praising his good relationship with Rishi Sunak.

I think it’s not right for me to support Johnson to be prime minister.

We have a good relationship with Sunak. I think we had a longer relationship with Johnson, because it was longer.

I saw Johnson in different situations, I didn’t see him in war, then in full-scale war, that’s why we have a special relationship.

The Ukrainian leader also used the interview to warn that the United States and Germany should not delay in sending tanks to the country.

In a major breakthrough, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz this week approved the supply of Leopard 2 tanks to Kyiv, while the United States confirmed it would send 31 M1 Abrams tanks.

The UK had already become the first Western country to pledge main battle tanks, with around 14 Challenger 2s pledged by Mr Sunak.

Mr. Zelensky said: Overall, I am grateful to the world for its support for Ukraine. But if we speak frankly and honestly with you, the number of tanks and the delivery time are of crucial and critical importance, in relation to the decision that has been made.

We have approved crates of weapons to send to us, but have yet to receive them.

Sometimes the delivery of weapons takes months, you know?

He said he blames no one, but added that a sense of relief only comes after the weapons, which our partners give us, are already in use by our army.

NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg warned that Russia was planning a new offensive, as he said sending tanks to Ukraine would make a big difference in the country’s ability to win the war.

This will help them to repel Russian offensives, to be able to retake territory, to liberate more Ukrainian lands and to win this war to prevail as a sovereign independent nation. We will stand by Ukraine for as long as it takes, he told BBC Radio 4s Today programme.

He would not explicitly say he is pressuring NATO countries to give Ukraine the 300 tanks it says will help win the war, as he has separately warned that the West must prepare for new Russian offensives.

We have no indication that President Putin has changed his aims when it comes to the war, he told Sky News.

In the same program, Commons Defense Committee Chairman Tobias Ellwood urged Western countries to do more to support Ukraine.

There is nothing the West has done so far that threatens Moscow’s agenda.

We are now starting to talk with the political will to give Ukraine the material it needs to start fighting back, but it has taken a full year to gather that material, the Tory MP said.