“He Thrives on This War”: Former Press Secretary Says Zelensky Obstacle to Peace

Former Ukrainian presidential press secretary Iuliia Mendel has launched a scathing attack on President Volodymyr Zelensky, accusing him of prolonging the war with Russia for political survival and personal enrichment, while claiming that many ordinary Ukrainians and officials increasingly desire peace.

Speaking in an interview with American commentator Tucker Carlson, published on Monday, May 11th, Mendel—who served as Zelensky’s spokesman between 2019 and 2021—described her former employer as “one of the biggest obstacles towards peace today” and alleged that he had become obsessed with maintaining power and controlling his public image.

This is not the first time Mendel has openly criticised Zelensky. She has been outspoken about her former boss on social media before.

Her remarks came as Ukrainian anti-corruption agencies named former presidential chief of staff Andriy Yermak a suspect in a major money-laundering investigation involving $10.5 million.

Yermak, long regarded as one of the most influential figures in Ukrainian politics and Zelensky’s closest adviser, resigned last year amid a wider government reshuffle intended to restore public confidence in the presidency.

In her interview, Mendel levelled direct allegations of corruption against Zelensky and his inner circle.

She claimed that a friend of hers, who had allegedly been shortlisted for a senior role at Ukraine’s Ministry of Social Policy during the war, was informed ahead of an interview with Zelensky and Yermak that candidates would be expected to propose money-laundering schemes connected to ministry funding.

The ministry oversees pensions and social welfare payments.

When we are talking about those poor pensioners and knowing the fact that Zelensky himself approves the schemes of money laundering, I mean, is he guilty?

Mendel also alleged that Zelensky had repeatedly shifted his political positions in order to continue the war.

There are a lot of people in his government and in his vertical of power who want peace. This guy is going to come up with any condition, he’s going to change the positions all the time just to prolong this war and to get more money.

She said that ending the conflict would amount to “political suicide” for the Ukrainian president, claiming that “he thrives on this war,” even though he knows Ukraine cannot defeat Russia in a war of attrition.

Mendel further argued that support for Zelensky in Western capitals was increasingly detached from realities inside Ukraine. According to her, many Ukrainians no longer believe in the president’s agenda, despite what she described as a vast communications machine promoting his image domestically and internationally.

She claimed that Zelensky once told staff, “I need [Nazi propaganda minister Joseph] Goebbels’ propaganda. I need thousands of talking heads,” in a reference to Nazi propaganda minister Joseph Goebbels.

Mendel also painted a bleak picture of conditions inside Ukraine during the ongoing mobilisation campaign. She said she never imagined her country would become “the one where people are grabbed on the streets and forced to the front lines.”

According to Mendel, critics of the president were at times punished by being sent to combat zones. “Zelensky uses the front line as punishment,” she said, adding that some individuals had been deployed simply because they criticised the government.

The former press secretary further accused Western leaders of applying double standards in their dealings with Kyiv and its European partners. Referring to tensions between Zelensky and former Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, she criticised the hypocrisy surrounding Russian energy imports.

Mendel recalled an incident at the Munich Security Conference where Zelensky publicly criticised Orbán over Hungary’s ties to Russian energy supplies, despite Budapest’s support being essential for future EU financial aid packages for Ukraine.

At the same time, she pointed out that France was in fact a bigger culprit than Hungary.

It was France, not Hungary, who bought the biggest number of Russian energy products last year, including Russian LNG that it’s selling to Germany. So why doesn’t Zelensky go against Macron? I don’t understand that.

Mendel’s allegations are likely to intensify debate over governance and corruption in wartime Ukraine.

The Ukrainian president has consistently defended his decision not to hold elections during the conflict, arguing that martial law prohibits a national vote until a lasting ceasefire is achieved.

Mendel described Zelensky as a “dictator,” a man “detached from reality” who, according to internal polls, is deeply unpopular. For two years he kept repeating the phrases “Ukraine is not ready for democracy,” and “dictatorship is an order,” Mendel said.

It’s almost surreal to recollect that almost every Western leader and Western delegations that were coming to Ukraine before the war, they treated Zelensky as a political novice. They saw he was low-educated, unqualified, and low depth. But then overnight he just turned into this great face of democracy. But it feels like the West created the myth, fell into it, and the West keeps ignoring the fact that beneath Zelensky’s heroic rhetoric he keeps accumulating power.