Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has faced criticism after he told The Washington Post that he had already received "grim warning" from US intelligence about the threat of war from Russia, but did not share these details with the public.
Zelenskyy did not make the warning public "out of fear that Ukrainians would leave the country en masse," he said in the interview published on Tuesday. The Washington Post wrote that since then, Zelenskyy has faced an outpouring of criticism which has escalated throughout the week.
Ukrainian citizens are reported to have expressed their discontent on social media and according to The Washington Post, some academics have said that the president "because of this, also bears some responsibility for the Russian atrocities."
Fears of refugee streams and economic collapse
Zelenskyy said in the interview that he feared "panic and massive refugee streams" that could result in an "economic collapse" if he had shared the warnings of US intelligence with the public. "Since October last year, we would have lost $7 billion a month and the moment the Russians attacked, they would have defeated us in three days," Zelenskyy said.
Russian forces were unable to take the capital Kyiv, which proves that he made the "right decision," according to Zelenskyy. "Most Ukrainians stayed here and fought for their homeland. As cynical as it may sound, those are the people who stopped the invaders," he said.
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However, many Ukrainian citizens believe that Zelenskyy has "put the economy above the well-being of Ukrainians" and think the many killings could have been prevented if Ukraine's population had been more adequately prepared for the war, reported The Washington Post.
Other citizens defend Zelenskyy, who stayed in Kyiv at the risk of his own life when Russia invaded Ukraine. Still, some wonder why blood banks were not created or why trenches were not dug on the border with Russia as a preparation for the incoming war.
