Ukrainian lawmakers have been left furious after the US special envoy Steve Witkoff questioned Ukraine’s “integrity” and their “sovereignty” sparking anger.
Witkoff is part of the US negotiations to attempt a ceasefire and he caused anger in Kyiv as he claimed that Ukrainians living in occupied territories want to live under Vladimir Putin’s rule.
Witkoff told Tucker Carlson in an interview that Ukrainians who live in the occupied regions of Ukraine want to live under the rule of Moscow as they voted to do so in “referendums,” which were in fact sham referendums and Ukrainians had no choice but to vote in favour of Putin.
He added, “They are Russian-speaking, and there have been referendums where the overwhelming majority of the people have indicated that they want to be under Russian rule.”
Witkoff who is a property investor is now negotiating for peace in Ukraine and told Carlson in the interview that he does “not regard” Putin “as a bad guy” and said that he “liked” the Russian leader.
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Oleksandr Merezhko, head of the parliament’s foreign affairs committee, told the Kyiv Independent, “In his statements, Witkoff calls into question the territorial integrity and sovereignty of Ukraine.”
Merezhko said, “Such statements are absolutely unacceptable and go against U.S. policy toward Ukraine.”
“That’s why it would be better if President Trump recalled Witkoff from the American delegation. Otherwise, it creates the wrong impression about U.S. foreign policy.”
Washington has signalled on several occasions that President Volodymyr Zelensky will have to cede Ukrainian territory to reach a deal with Putin as Kyiv is wanting the borders to return to pre-2014 borders, which the US has described as “unrealistic.”
Yelyzaveta Yasko, a lawmaker from Zelensky’s party, told the Kyiv Independent, “I think many things that the United States already said in recent weeks are quite controversial.
“But I want to give this time for the international community to try different ways (in ending the war).”
Yeskov said that Witkoff’s statements over Ukraine’s territories is “concerning,” adding, “And for us, it is very important that the war ends with just peace, with justice,” the Kyiv Independent reported.
During an interview with Tucker Carlson Witkoff said, “I don’t regard Putin as a bad guy. He’s super smart.”
Witkoff also said described Sir Keir Starmer’s plan for European troops to be peacekeepers in Ukraine is “a posture and pose.”
Witkoff told Carlson in the interview that Starmer’s idea for a European peacekeeping force in Ukraine is “simplistic” and leaders in Europe could be thinking “we have all got to be like Winston Churchill.”
He added, “I think it’s a combination of a posture and a pose and a combination of also being simplistic.
“There is this sort of notion that we have all got to be like Winston Churchill. Russians are going to march across Europe. That is preposterous by the way. We have something called NATO that we did not have in World War Two.”
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