Katie wrote about this earlier today. President Joe Biden had a chat with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, and it did not go well at all. The rumor is that Biden had to be told to calm down and that Kyiv was not about to be sacked. There are only bits and pieces of information, but if true—this call was a train wreck. Also, where’s the transcript? For now, it’s a flurry of anonymous sources leaking portions that make Biden look terrible:
BuzzFeed News, quoting source close to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky:
— Breaking911 (@Breaking911) January 24, 2022
“Americans are safer in Kyiv than they are in Los Angeles ... or any other crime-ridden city in the US.”
During a phone call Thursday afternoon, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky reportedly told President Joe Biden to tone down the messaging as he continued to claim Russia was going to invade the country. The call is being described as one that "did not go well."
The White House is pushing back on this interpretation of the call but has not released a transcript.
Earlier this week Ukrainian officials criticized the State Department's directive for family members of U.S. diplomats to depart Kyiv, saying it was a premature overreaction.
And now, President Zelensky seems to confirm the reports of a bad call by telling the media today that he’s the president, he’s based here in Ukraine, and that he knows the details of the situation better here. At any rate, he blew up Biden and the State Department’s position of an imminent invasion. As for the Russian threat, Zelensky noted that it’s been here for years. It’s always present.
Ukrainian President Zelensky meeting with foreign media now. He says regarding the Russian threat and call with Biden yesterday, “I’m the president of Ukraine and I’m based here and I think I know the details better here.” pic.twitter.com/GEFgxa6VEv
— Christopher Miller (@ChristopherJM) January 28, 2022
Zelensky: It’s important not to get information based on intelligence gathering. It’s important to be here.
— Christopher Miller (@ChristopherJM) January 28, 2022
I don’t think the situation is more intense than in 2014.
Zelensky on the Russian threat getting closer to what the US is saying. But his point is that the threat has been here since 2014. “The threat is imminent. The threat is constant.”
— Christopher Miller (@ChristopherJM) January 28, 2022
Zelensky on the Russian threat getting closer to what the US is saying. But his point is that the threat has been here since 2014. “The threat is imminent. The threat is constant.”
— Christopher Miller (@ChristopherJM) January 28, 2022
The good news I guess is that the whole evacuation of Americans, at this point, seemed premature. It looked like we could have lost another embassy, and the images of helicopters evacuating Americans is just not a good look for this administration who already had a shambolic exit from Afghanistan. Then again, they also played the same card, saying they couldn’t guarantee to get everyone out. Ukraine is downplaying rumors of war. The bad news is that a) it looks like Biden is totally aloof and b) looked like they were beating war drums to distract us from the crises at home. The leaking of Justice Breyer’s retirement is another example of this White House trying to change the narrative in the media, especially since Biden called Fox News reporter Peter Doocy a “son of a bitch” during a hot mic moment. Stumbling and tumbling Biden needs good news—there is none. So, wish for war and leak SCOTUS retirements is the fallback?
It’s all-around messy at 1600 right now.
— The Right To Bear Memes (@grandoldmemes) January 27, 2022
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