MOSCOW, May 6. /TASS/. The talks between US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky suggest Washington’s desire to restore tight control of Kiev partially lost over internal problems in the United States during the presidential elections, Deputy Director of the Institute of CIS Countries Vladimir Zharikhin told TASS on Thursday.
"The talks were organized to restore US quite tight and continued control of the Ukrainian leadership after a changeover in the White House and largely in the US Department of State," the expert pointed out.
During the change of power, the United States refocused on its internal problems and therefore it is important for Washington to demonstrate that it is still interested in Ukraine’s affairs, Zharikhin said.
"They shifted their focus on the elections and the changeover and they had their own problems. But now all this has gone and so you should bear in mind that the United States is keeping a close eye on every step [by Ukraine] and each step must be coordinated. This has been the visit’s main goal. Blinken will daily embrace global issues and problems with China. But [US Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs Victoria] Nuland will deal with Ukraine," he added.
The expert cited the situation with the change of the head of the Ukrainian national oil and gas company Naftogaz as an example of the US interference in Ukraine’s affairs.
"As an example that it’s no good [for Ukraine] to display an initiative, the Naftogaz head has been sacked and there has been an attempt to put [acting Ukrainian Energy Minister Yuri] Vitrenko in his place. This could hardly be the most important issue in the relations between the US and Ukraine but it was prioritized in the meeting’s agenda. This is an example that Ukraine must not act contrary to the opinion of bosses from Washington even in internal matters," the expert pointed out.
Commenting on Zelensky’s statement that Kiev still sees a threat on the border with Russia, the expert stressed that this position was not something new.
"Zelensky has a certain pattern that is used as the basis in Kiev’s attempt not to fulfill the Minsk accords," Zharikhin said.
Zelensky and Blinken held a meeting in Kiev on Thursday. The US Secretary of State announced that at his meeting with the Ukrainian president he had discussed the anti-corruption fight and the efforts to ensure the integrity and independence of anti-corruption agencies and judicial authorities.
Also, the Ukrainian media outlet Strana reported, citing sources in the national parliament, that Nuland who had also arrived in Kiev advised Ukrainian politicians not to further develop the issue of Ukraine’s NATO membership and expressed her dissatisfaction over the change of the Naftogaz chief.