Zelenskyy denies drug use, comments on his former press secretary's accusations
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has denied using drugs, an accusation levelled against him by various American conservative bloggers and his former press secretary Yuliia Mendel.
Source: Zelenskyy in an interview with American blogger Laura Loomer
Details: Responding to Loomer's comment about the spread of Russian propaganda through statements by well-known influencers accusing the Ukrainian president of drug use, Zelenskyy called them "crazy people".
He also denied using cocaine together with French President Emmanuel Macron.
Besides former Fox News host Tucker Carlson and political activist Candace Owens, Loomer also mentioned Mendel's podcast. Zelenskyy rejected all her accusations and said he does not watch any of Carlson's interviews.
Quote: "There are different people and different TV hosts, bloggers, etc. Some of them are good, some of them are too tough… But there are smart people and there are not smart people. For me, I watch smart people, and I never watch not-smart people, because it doesn't help. So I didn't watch Tucker Carlson's interview with anybody."
Background:
- Mendel previously claimed in an interview with Tucker Carlson that the Ukrainian delegation at the Istanbul talks in spring 2022 had been ready to accept all of Russia's demands in order to end the war, basing her claims solely on conversations with named individuals. Among other things, Mendel accused Zelenskyy of money laundering and of using drugs in clubs.
- Mendel also claimed that Andrii Yermak, former head of the President's Office, practises black magic, making visits to cemeteries and using "dead water" (water that was used to wash dead bodies).
- Mendel also called Yermak "a very dangerous person" and stated that she fears for her life. At the same time, she limited herself to very vague wording, citing "her experience" and "connections" and providing no details to back up her claims.
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