Ukrainian Prime Minister Volodymyr Zelensky has cancelled his visit to Madrid, scheduled for Friday, May 17, according to sources within the Spanish Royal House.
He was scheduled to meet with Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez and King Felipe VI to discuss the war, with Spanish leaders keen to restate their support for Kyiv.
Diplomatic sources now indicate that the Ukrainian president’s trip, which would have also included Portugal, was cancelled due to the renewed Russian offensive.
Spain’s government had not officially announced the visit, although sources inside the left-wing administration acknowledged on May 13 that preparations had already been underway.
The Minister of Foreign Affairs, José Manuel Albares had meanwhile avoided confirming Zelensky’s visit, seemingly to prevent any embarrassment should arrangements fall through.
“On any movement of President Zelensky anywhere in the world, for security reasons, first of all, I will not comment, confirm, deny or add,” he said.
Albares reported that he had previously chatted with his Ukrainian counterpart, Dmitry Kuleba, but insisted that “for many reasons, including security,” he would not comment on the details of any diplomatic visit.
So far, the only intervention of the Ukrainian president was a video address in the Spanish Parliament.
Occurring shortly after the invasion began, Zelenksy called for a boycott of companies doing business with Russia, including Spanish companies.
COMMENT: No more stupid wars: The West must not allow itself to be dragged further into the Russia-Ukraine war, writes M E Synon. https://t.co/P9ov5KtoOF
— Brussels Signal (@brusselssignal) March 19, 2024
Wednesday’s announcement comes shortly after Russia opened a new front in its war against the Western-aligned country.
The gambit, which has seemingly taken Kyiv by surprise, saw Russian troops launch an offensive on the northeastern front of Kharkiv, the second-largest city in the country that serves as a strategic point of control for the Donbas region.
Meanwhile, the Ukrainian president received in Kyiv on May 14 U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, who reaffirmed Washington’s support against the Russian offensive and acknowledged that Ukraine is going through “difficult times”.
He also confirmed that U.S. military aid approved last month has already begun to reach the frontline, despite growing voices against continuing America’s indefinite support of the embattled state.
The Spanish government, by contrast, has been heavily criticized for providing relatively little support to Ukraine. At the beginning of the 2022 invasion, the country sent little in the form of military aid, with what munitions were sent reportedly being in a deteriorated state.
Sánchez had wanted to use Zelensky’s visit to silence those critical of Spain’s support.
Madis Roll, Security Policy Advisor to the Estonian President Alar Karis, has said that although his country was not planning on sending troops to Ukraine, it would be “practically and militarily logical” to do so. https://t.co/6GxSIR10dX
— Brussels Signal (@brusselssignal) May 15, 2024
