KYIV: Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelensky on Friday dismissed the country\u2019s ambassador to the United Kingdom, Vadym Prystaiko, after he criticized the president\u2019s response to a row over British military aid.
\nPrystaiko had criticized Zelensky\u2019s sarcastic response to suggestions from British defense minister Ben Wallace that Ukraine should show more gratitude for arms supplies from its allies.
\nZelensky signed a decree dismissing Prystaiko, published on the presidential website. It did not provide a reason.
\nThe row began when Wallace told journalists at a NATO summit in Vilnius this month that Britain was not an Amazon delivery service for weapons to Ukraine and suggested Kyiv could express more \u201cgratitude.\u201d
\nThe UK is a major donor of weapons to Ukraine and also trains its troops.
\nZelensky responded at a press conference at the summit, saying he did not know how else to make clear Ukraine\u2019s gratitude, adding: \u201cWe could wake up in the morning and express our words of gratitude to the minister personally.\u201d
\nThe Ukrainian diplomat agreed with a suggestion from a Sky News interviewer that Zelensky responded with \u201ca little bit of sarcasm\u201d to Wallace.
\n\u201cI don\u2019t believe that this sarcasm is healthy. We don\u2019t have to show the Russians that we have something between us, they have to know that we are working together,\u201d Prystaiko added, stressing the need to smooth over relations with the UK.
\n\u201cIf anything happens, Ben can call me and tell me everything he wants,\u201d the diplomat said.
\nPrystaiko is a career diplomat who has served as ambassador to the United Kingdom since July 2020. He was previously Ukraine\u2019s foreign minister from 2019 to 2020.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
KYIV: Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelensky on Friday dismissed the country\u2019s ambassador to the United Kingdom, Vadym Prystaiko, after he criticized the president\u2019s response to a row over British military aid. Prystaiko had criticized Zelensky\u2019s sarcastic response to suggestions from British defense minister Ben Wallace that Ukraine should show more gratitude for arms supplies from its […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":344541,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-344508","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-world"},"yoast_head":"\n