Ukraine criticized the pro-Russian president of Bulgaria, Rumen Radev, for his statements that Kyiv is to blame for Russia’s current war and that providing arms to Ukraine only prolongs the conflict.

President Rumen Radev told reporters Friday during a press conference in which he spoke about the recent NATO summit that he wanted to “make it clear that Ukraine insists on waging this war.”

“But it should also be clear that the whole of Europe pays the bill,” he added.

According to the AP, Radev’s comments are part of his ongoing efforts to keep Bulgaria out of joint EU military support for Ukraine.

Ukraine’s embassy in Sofia said in a statement on Saturday that Kyiv was making all possible efforts to restore peace, and rejected Radev’s position that providing arms to Ukraine incites and perpetuates the war.

Accusations of the war in Ukraine, which “suffered a treacherous attack from its northern neighbor, is one of the most common supporting theses of Russian propaganda and hybrid war in Europe,” the embassy said.

President Rumen Radev recently complained that Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelenskyi’s visit to Sofia last week was not agreed with him and that he found out about it after he had already been invited. Radeva commented that she could not meet him, but it would be a bad sign, reports Mediapool.

“In this situation, it would be easiest not to hold such a meeting, but this is not a very good signal for Bulgaria, especially for the 300,000 Bulgarians in Ukraine,” he commented.

• “It turned him to powder.” According to the press, a heated exchange of words between Zelenskyi and his Bulgarian colleague: “Mr. Radev, this is not a conflict, but a war!”

Radev, created in Sofia by Zelenskyi

Zelenskyi visited Bulgaria primarily to meet with the pro-NATO and pro-European cabinet of Prime Minister Nikolay Denkov, which supports arms exports to Ukraine and is also looking for ways to sell civilian nuclear equipment to Kyiv.

The meeting with Radev, a former air force commander who sympathizes with Russia and is ambivalent about NATO, went even worse than expected.

Huddled on either side of a long wooden table, the Ukrainian delegation, dressed in military uniform, sat with impassive expressions, occasionally grimacing and taking notes, face-to-face with Radev’s team as the Bulgarian president explained that “there is no military solution.” and that “more and more guns won’t solve it,” reports Politico.

Zelensky responded with measured disdain. “God forbid some tragedy happens to you and you end up in my place,” he said. “And if people with the same values ​​don’t help you, what will you do? Would you say: Putin, please take over some Bulgarian territory?’

“No, you, as a real president, I am sure, will not allow your independence to be compromised. It is your right not to support aid to Ukraine. But I would very much like you to understand me correctly,” he told her with sharp sarcasm, while Radev timidly hid in the notebook in front of him from time to time.