Summary of the day
Officials and pundits in the west reacted with dismay with Tucker Carlson’s interview with the Russian president, Vladimir Putin.
Rishi Sunak, the British prime minister, called Putin’s claim that the war in Ukraine was a result of Nato expansion “clearly ridiculous”.
Reacting to the interview, Belgian MEP Guy Verhofstadt said that America “will suffer from having him spreading lies unchallenged and unfiltered” and “this is how democracies die.”
A spokesperson for the European Commission said that the interview with Putin was just a repeat of his usual “lies” and “war propaganda”.
Ville Cantell, a director at the Finnish ministry of foreign affairs, suggested watching 20 Days in Mariupol instead of the Putin interview.
Volodymyr Zelenskiy awarded Valerii Zaluzhnyi the title of Hero of Ukraine, after firing him as Ukraine’s top commander.
A bipartisan American congressional delegation arrived Kyiv, amid mounting pressure for more aid.
Tobias Billström, the Swedish minister for foreign affairs, underscored that aid to Kyiv “is being constantly monitored.”
Norway’s ministry of defence said that the country’s government is proposing providing more NASAMS to Ukraine.
The United Arab Emirates said it succeeded in mediating a prisoner exchange between Russia and Ukraine.
Polish farmers blocked roads, including on border crossings with Ukraine.
'Shocking': Polish minister criticises Carlson interview
The Polish foreign minister, Radek Sikorski, has pushed back against Tucker Carlson’s interview with Vladimir Putin.
“We are used to paranoid justifications for Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022. What’s shocking is that this time they are enabled by an American journalist,” he said.
It's not the first time the Russian dictator V. Putin blames 🇵🇱, invaded by the USSR on 17.09.1939, for the outbreak of the #WWII.
— Radek Sikorski (@radeksikorski) February 9, 2024
We are used to paranoid justifications for Russia's invasion of 🇺🇦 in 2022.
What’s shocking is that this time they are enabled by an 🇺🇸 journalist.
