fierce fighting in several eastern towns, including Bakhmout

Brazilian President Lula says he is ‘upset’ that he did not meet Zelensky at the G7

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, who obtained new pledges of military equipment as well as diplomatic support from G7 countries during his trip this weekend to Hiroshima, Japan, had asked to speak directly with his Brazilian counterpart, Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, known as Lula, very reluctant to condemn the Russian invasion.

But the two leaders did not succeed because of their respective overloaded agendas, they justified. A missed appointment which, according to Mr. Zelensky, probably left the Brazilian president ” disappointed “.

“I was not disappointed”replied Lula, Monday at a press conference, before leaving Japan. “I was upset, because I would like to meet him and discuss the subject”he continued. “But Mr. Zelensky is a great person. He knows what he’s doing. »

Lula specified that a meeting with Mr. Zelensky should have taken place on Sunday afternoon, on the last day of the G7. But the Ukrainian president arrived late and his busy schedule prevented them from scheduling a new meeting, he explained.

Lula, however, said he saw no point in meeting Mr Zelensky immediately, believing that neither he nor Vladimir Putin wanted peace. “For now, they are both convinced that they will win the war”he justified.

Unlike several Western powers, Brazil has never imposed financial sanctions on Russia or agreed to supply ammunition to Kiev and is trying to position itself, like China and Indonesia, as a mediator. Lula sparked controversy when he said last month in Beijing that the United States must stop “to encourage war” in Ukraine and that the European Union should “start talking about peace”.

Remarks harshly criticized by Washington, which had accused Brazil of “echoing Russian and Chinese propaganda without taking the facts into account”. Lula later changed his tone, condemning the Russian invasion, before renewing his criticism on Monday. According to him, US President Joe Biden sends the following message: “Putin must surrender and pay for what he completely destroyed”. “This post doesn’t help,” he added.

source site