Zelensky invited to White House as Giuliani call leaked

U.S. President Joe Biden and Ukrainian President
Volodymyr Zelensky spoke by telephone on June 7. The whitehouse.gov readout of
the call states that the two presidents covered Ukraine’s efforts against
corruption and to “implement a reform agenda”. Biden also reaffirmed the U.S.
“unwavering commitment to Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.”
Zelensky was also invited to visit the White House after Biden’s return from
Europe.

The readout from the Ukrainian side also included, at
first, a sentence claiming that Biden had declared his support for Ukraine’s
NATO succession. That line was subsequently removed, pravda.com.ua reports.

The call came as Biden prepares for a European tour
that will include G7 and NATO summits and a meeting with Russian president
Putin. It also comes as the American press releases transcripts of a 2019 call
in which then-president Donald Trump’s attorney, Rudy Giuliani pressured Andriy
Yermak, now head of Zelensky’s administration, to “find a prosecutor” who would
begin an investigation into the Bidens.

James Hydzik: Biden’s reassurances regarding the U.S. position on Ukraine’s
territorial integrity and sovereignty probably were understood correctly by
Zelensky and the administration. The fact that the Ukrainian side included the
sentence about NATO MAP support points at best to wishful thinking manifesting
itself or, less likely, a woeful misunderstanding when trying to play on the
same court with, as Zelensky himself put it, “the Michael Jordan of politics”.