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Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has accused US envoy Steve Witkoff of “disseminating Russian narratives,” after the American diplomat made controversial feedback about occupied elements of Ukraine.

Talking throughout a information convention Thursday, Zelensky accused Witkoff of taking the “technique of the Russian facet.”

“I believe it is extremely harmful as a result of he’s consciously or unconsciously, I don’t know, disseminating Russian narratives. In any case, it doesn’t assist,” he stated.

Witkoff touted his latest talks with Russia’s President Vladimir Putin — his third assembly with the Russian chief — in an interview with Fox Information on Monday, describing the assembly as “compelling.”

Witkoff informed Fox Information that any peace deal in Ukraine will middle on the “so-called 5 territories,” referring to Crimea, the Ukrainian peninsula Russia annexed in 2014, and the 4 mainland Ukrainian areas Russia has occupied since its full-scale invasion in 2022 – Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia and Kherson.

Some background: These 4 areas have been illegally annexed throughout Russia’s full-scale invasion and Kyiv vehemently opposes giving them up. The Kremlin has since staged referendums on becoming a member of Russia in these areas, which have been broadly dismissed as a sham by the worldwide neighborhood.

CNN has beforehand reported that voting within the areas had been carried out at gunpoint, with one resident saying the outcomes have been a foregone conclusion.

Witkoff’s feedback on Monday prompted accusations that he was making an attempt to parrot Moscow’s line. Oleksandr Merezhko, a member of Ukraine’s parliament, informed CNN Tuesday that Witkoff “with all due respect… could also be inadvertently making an attempt to push pro-Russian narratives.”

Keep in mind: It’s not the primary time Witkoff has been accused of echoing Kremlin speaking factors. Final month, in an extended interview with podcast host Tucker Carlson, Witkoff praised a “gracious” Putin and dismissed longstanding issues throughout Europe that Putin would search to invade additional territory if given the chance. He additionally claimed that referendums within the 4 mainland areas of Ukraine annexed by Russia confirmed the “overwhelming majority of the individuals have indicated that they need to be below Russian rule.”