NBC News correspondent says Zelenskyy not 'overly impressed' by Biden's comments on Putin
The Russian strike on Lviv may have been a 'bit of an insult' against Biden, Richard Engel said
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Richard Engel, NBC News' chief foreign correspondent, told Chuck Todd on Sunday's "Meet The Press" that he doesn't believe Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy was "overly impressed" with President Biden's comments in Poland about Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Engel told Todd that the "Russian military strategy is all over the place." He said the strike on Lviv, a Ukrainian city 50 miles from the Polish border, was also likely meant to be a message to Biden.
"A bit of an insult to say ‘we’re going to strike right near the Polish border while you're in Poland," Engel said.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Russian President Vladimir Putin listens to St. Petersburg's governor Alexander Beglov during their meeting in the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia, Tuesday, March 1, 2022 (Alexei Nikolsky, Sputnik, Kremlin Pool Photo via AP)
Russian missiles hit a gas terminal at the train station in Lviv on Saturday. No one was killed, but five were injured, according to Lviv's mayor, Andriy Sadoviy.
"The aggressor wants to say hello to President Biden, who is in Poland," Sadoviy said.
BIDEN CALLS PUTIN A ‘BUTCHER’ AFTER MEETING WITH UKRAINIAN REFUGEES IN POLAND
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The NBC News correspondent also noted Biden called Putin a "butcher." Todd asked how the "presidential ad-lib that may go down in world history" went over with Zelenskyy.
In this handout photo taken from video provided by the Ukrainian Presidential Press Office, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy addresses the nation in Kyiv, Ukraine, Thursday, Feb. 24, 2022. (Ukrainian Presidential Press Office via AP) (Ukrainian Presidential Press Office via AP)
"I don't think President Zelenskyy was overly impressed," Engel said. He noted that Zelenskyy spoke earlier on Sunday and accused "western leaders" of "being all talk," adding that he did not mention Biden by name.
Engel read a translation of the Ukrainian president's speech.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"If only those that have been thinking for 31 days on how to hand over dozens of jets and tank had 1 percent of their courage," it read.
BIDEN SAYS PUTIN ‘CANNOT REMAIN IN POWER’ AS HE REASSURES UKRAINE: ‘WE STAND WITH YOU’
"So he's saying that meeting in NATO which promised a lot of support still isn't yielding the kind of results Ukrainians want," the NBC correspondent added.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}President Joe Biden speaks at the National League of Cities Congressional City Conference, Monday, March 14, 2022, in Washington. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky) (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky)
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Biden met with Ukrainian refugees in Warsaw, Poland over the weekend. In a speech, Biden said Putin "cannot remain in power," which the White House later walked back, saying that Biden was calling for a regime change.
"The President’s point was that Putin cannot be allowed to exercise power over his neighbors or the region. He was not discussing Putin’s power in Russia, or regime change," a White House official told Fox News Digital.