President Zelensky Reacts Discontentedly to U
S. Congratulations on Russia Day, Highlighting an Unpleasant Fact Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky expressed his outrage and discontent regarding the greetings from the United States of America concerning Russia Day. His particular indignation was provoked by a congratulatory message from U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, which the Ukrainian leader described as an “unpleasant fact.” This occurred during his conversation with journalists, to whom representatives from “Ukrainian Pravda” were not invited, but the message was conveyed to the public through sources, notably public broadcaster “Suspilne.” Live on air, Volodymyr Zelensky characterized this incident as “an unpleasant fact.” According to him, “greetings from Russia on its own Independence Day are a recent and unacceptable practice, especially considering the current context.” He emphasized that this day is “Russia’s Independence Day,” and that Moscow seeks to diminish Ukraine to the status of an independent state, a value Ukraine aims to defend. Zelensky stressed that the primary goal of Russia’s invasion is “preserving and defending Ukraine’s independence,” and that any formal or informal greeting to the aggressor is perceived by him as a sign of disrespect and can undermine the efforts of the Ukrainian people. The head of state added that he perceives such greetings with disdain – not only because of the symbolism but also due to their content. “I will not hide: when other countries greet the aggressor country on its national holiday, it appears especially painful. It is very difficult to accept when our strategic partners, particularly the U.S., with whom we strive for close cooperation on security and sovereignty, themselves greet the aggressor country,” Zelensky noted. What preceded this stance? On June 12, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio made a loud statement by congratulating Russian citizens on the national holiday — Russia Day. In his address, he stated that the U.S. aims for constructive dialogue with Moscow to “achieve a lasting peace between Russia and Ukraine,” and emphasized that “the conflict-participating states must work toward ending hostilities.” Rubio also noted that the U.S. “remains committed to supporting the Russian people and aims to build a bright future together with them,” which elicited positive reactions in Kremlin circles and drew criticism from Ukrainian diplomacy. It is worth noting that the reaction from Ukraine’s foreign policy authority did not take long. Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Andriy Yermak also expressed his attitude, stating that it was “unpleasant” to read greetings from some countries on Russia’s day, as such behavior could be perceived as a hostile gesture or a direct confirmation of support for Kremlin policies toward Ukraine. Thus, Kyiv is currently not hiding its disappointment with some world leaders’ attempts to support Russia in its celebrations, while Ukraine continues fighting for its independent future and refuses to allow the aggressor to sow discord even during this difficult time of war.