US Slams Putin’s Claim That Zelensky is ‘Not a Jew’

The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum (USHMM) firmly denounced Russian President Vladimir Putin’s recent claim that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky “is not a Jew, but a disgrace to the Jewish people.” In response, the USHMM expressed on Twitter, “Vladimir Putin has repeatedly employed antisemitic lies and distorted the Holocaust to justify his brutal invasion of Ukraine. We condemn his recent remarks denigrating Ukrainian President Zelensky and the Jewish people.”

During an interview at the St. Petersburg Economic Forum, Putin was asked why he continues to label the Ukrainian government as a “Nazi” regime. In his reply, Putin cited his Jewish acquaintances, stating, “They say Zelensky is not a Jew, but a disgrace to the Jewish people. And this is not a joke, not irony. After all, neo-Nazis, the followers of Hitler, have been erected on the podium as heroes of Ukraine today. The Holocaust is a murder of six million Jews, and one and a half million were destroyed in Ukraine, above all by the hands of Banderites.”

Putin has frequently referred to Stepan Bandera, a Ukrainian far-right partisan leader and antisemite who collaborated with the Nazis, particularly since Russia’s invasion and annexation of Crimea in 2014. Bandera’s glorification by some Ukrainians for his nationalist legacy has been a point of contention between Putin and Ukraine. Putin has presented Russia’s invasion as an effort toward “demilitarization and denazification.”

Deborah Lipstadt, the US Special Envoy to Monitor and Combat Antisemitism, also condemned Putin’s remarks, emphasizing that President Zelensky’s Jewish heritage holds no relevance to the situation in Ukraine. Lipstadt criticized Putin’s persistent focus on this topic and the promotion of a “denazification” narrative, which serves as a distraction from Russia’s aggressive actions against the Ukrainian people.

Zelensky has frequently emphasized his Jewish background and his family’s Holocaust experiences during his interactions with foreign leaders. At an Israeli commemoration event in January 2020, Zelensky shared a poignant story with Israeli Prime Minister Bibi Netanyahu, saying, “Three of them, their parents and their families became victims of the Holocaust. All of them were shot by German occupiers who invaded Ukraine. The fourth brother survived… Two years after the war, he had a son, and in 31 years, he had a grandson. In 40 more years, that grandson became president, and he is standing before you today, Mr. Prime Minister.”

{Matzav.com}