Former Ukrainian president offers a scathing response to remarks of Russia’s president who, after talks with French president Emmanuel Marcron on Monday, wryly mentioned  Moscow could grant Poroshenko ‘asylum’ if he faces some ‘issues’ in Ukraine.

‘I believe that Poroshenko made quite many mistakes in the issue [of Donbas conflict]. Still, holding him accountable as a state criminal is a vain pursuit for the current government. We are ready here, in Russia, to grant asylum to people like Mr.Poroshenko’.

Putin also claimed it was clear Poroshenko was going to face this sort of rough treatment from his successor in the office.

A thinly veiled swiped didn’t go unnoticed in Kyiv as the same day Petro Poroshenko said it is time for Moscow leader to realize that ‘we can sort out [our domestic issues] on our own here’ adding that Russia’s ‘patronizing’ attitude to Ukraine’s politics and its politicians doesn’t work anymore.

Poroshenko argued that Zelensky’s clampdown on domestic opposition plays into hands of Putin whose latest statements prove it to be the case.  The Ukrainian president should stop to ‘please’ Putin by going after political opponents, which weakens Ukraine, and needs to go about Ukraine’s defense issues in the first place.