Zelenskyy replies whether he warned Biden about the Kursk Operation
The President said he significantly reduced the number of people aware of the operation.
President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy / Screenshot from a video
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy stated that he did not inform U.S. President Joe Biden's administration about the plans to launch an operation in Russia's Kursk region.
Zelenskyy shared this information in an interview with NBC News.
He explained that only a very limited circle of people were aware of the operation in Kursk to prevent any information leaks.
"Yes, we did not inform anyone," Zelenskyy replied when asked if Ukraine had notified the Biden administration about the operation.
"This is not a matter of mistrust. We did not inform many institutions within our own country. You understand, this is war, and information leaks happen constantly. It might not even be from a person, but through communication systems or plans, sometimes even in closed headquarters. The more people involved, the more information, and thus, the higher the chance of a leak," the President explained.
Zelenskyy noted that Ukraine had "problems before the southern operation" over a year ago, when virtually everyone knew about the preparations for the operation.
"Everyone knew about that operation. And the Russians knew. They knew the details. When our forces advanced in the south, they were ready," Zelenskyy said.
"So, it’s not about mistrust. I’m showing that even our partners didn’t know. Many services, even Ukrainian intelligence, were not aware of this. I minimized the number of people who knew about the operation. That's why it came as such a surprise. I believe this was one of the reasons the operation was successful," the President remarked.
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