'Guys dig trenches': Kuleba reveals how US warned Ukraine in 2021 about Russian invasion, but Europeans ignored warning
Former Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmitro Kuleba said that in September 2021, Victoria Nuland, then US Assistant Secretary of State, conveyed to him and Andriy Yermak that a Russian invasion was inevitable.
Dmitro Kuleba Photo: EPA-EFE
The Ukrainian diplomat said a White House representative told them directly that they had to “dig trenches” because Putin will attack, but no one in the world believed this, except for the United States, writes focus.
“Victoria Nuland came and said: 'Well, you guys dig trenches'. Shock. I went out. I spoke calmly and decided: if something like this happens, it can't be hidden. So, someone else must know about it. We need to talk to the Europeans. Do they see the same thing?”, said Kuleba, in an interview given to journalist Dmitri Gordon.
The former minister added that at the time the US did not provide Ukraine with specific data about the attack, and Kiev decided to gather information and verify it with European partners.
“We turned to the Europeans. The Europeans said: “What are you doing, what a war, nothing will happen, these are some intrigues of the Americans. Calm down, guys, the main thing is – don't provoke Russia», Kuleba stated.
Regarding the position of other states, the diplomat noted that only the United Kingdom and Canada supported the American assessment that there will be war at the end of 2021.
“The last two did it more out of Anglo-Saxon solidarity than because they learned anything there”explained Kuleba.
