Lula says he did not meet with Zelensky because the Ukrainian president was late and did not show up for the meeting | Policy

President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva (PT) said on Sunday (21) that he did not meet with the President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelensky, because the President of Ukraine was late for the bilateral meeting and then did not show up for the meeting with the President of Ukraine. Brazilian president.

“The truth is very simple, there was a bilateral meeting with Ukraine here in this room. We waited and received information that they were late. Meanwhile, I received the President of Vietnam. When the President of Vietnam left, Ukraine did not come,” Lula said.

Lula also downplayed the absence of a one-on-one meeting with Zelensky because, according to Lula, the two presidents listened to each other’s rhetoric about the conflict between Ukraine and Russia.

Lula continued, “I listened carefully to Zelensky’s speech at the meeting. He certainly listened to my speech at the meeting. I am still in the same position I was in before.”

Lula and the President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelensky, did not hold a bilateral meeting during the G7 leaders’ summit due to “incompatibility of agendas”. It was the Ukrainian president who requested the meeting with Lula.

According to the Brazilian government, the possibility of a meeting had been negotiated and a meeting room had been set up for the meeting. However, “due to inconsistency of dates,” the meeting did not take place.

According to the Brazilian government, Lula offered more than one time, but the Ukrainian president’s team was unable to include the meeting in Zelensky’s agenda.

When asked if he was disappointed that the meeting did not take place, the Ukrainian president sarcastically said that he thought Lula should have been disappointed. On Sunday (21), Zelensky met with the President of the United States, Joe Biden.

Lula will also meet with the US president, but according to the Brazilian government, Biden wanted to meet the heads of state of Indonesia, India and Brazil, but it was not possible to coordinate the agendas.