KYIV – Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky tells “Axios on HBO” that he was “shocked” by the pro-Trump crowd that stormed the Capitol, saying he never thought this could happen in America and that it was the efforts of the US to promote democracy abroad.
Why it matters: Zelensky’s comments reveal how the January 6 riots reverberate beyond America’s borders, troubling allies and emerging democracies looking to the US for security and inspiration.
- In the interview, Zelensky also talks more openly than ever about his 2019 appeal with then-President Trump, paving the way for Trump’s first impeachment.
- Zelensky hopes to restore the relationship between the US and Ukraine under the new administration and with President Biden, whom he has yet to meet.
The big picture: The spectacle of the siege of the Capitol deeply impressed Zelensky and led him to rethink his assumptions about America. “I think this was a severe blow to United States democracy,” he said through an interpreter in an interview at his presidential office.
- “We are used to believing that the United States has the ideal democratic institutions, where power is transferred calmly.… In Ukraine we have witnessed two revolutions… we understand that something like this can happen in the world.
- ‘But that it could happen in the United States? Nobody expected that … I was very worried … I didn’t want you to have a coup d’état.
- “After something like that, I think it would be very difficult for the world to see the United States as a symbol of democracy.”
Between the lines: Zelensky is in a difficult situation – caught between a hostile intruder in Russia and allies in Europe and the US, speaking a good match when it comes to defending Ukraine, but often absent when it really matters.
- The void of US rhetoric was clearly revealed in 2014 when Russia invaded Ukraine and seized Crimea and its eastern areas.
- Then President Obama spoke out strongly against the invasion, as did his point person on Ukraine – then Vice President Biden. But the Obama administration would not send weapons to the Ukrainians to defend themselves from their invaders.
The backstory: In the years since, Zelensky has faced other American betrayals. As the newly elected president in 2019, he hoped to have a productive relationship with Trump. But in their infamous early phone call, Trump was not interested in helping Ukraine.
- Trump was fixated on bullying Zelensky by announcing an investigation into Hunter Biden, the son of his political rival. Trump briefly withheld hundreds of millions of dollars in aid to Ukraine as leverage to pressure Zelensky into announcing these investigations.
- Trump eventually released the aid after members of Congress raised the alarm over his plan, but after that he never dealt with Ukraine again and gave Zelensky the cold shoulder.