BRASILIA, May 4 (Reuters) - Former Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva said Russia never should have invaded Ukraine, but he believes Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy is as much to blame for the war as Russian leader Vladimir Putin.
In an interview with Time magazine published on Wednesday, the leftist leader also said U.S. President Joe Biden could have done more to prevent the conflict instead of inciting it.
Lula said it is irresponsible for Western leaders to celebrate Zelenskiy because they are encouraging war instead of focusing on closed-door negotiations to stop the fighting. “This guy is as responsible as Putin for the war. Because in the war, there’s not just one person guilty,” he added. “The United States has a lot of political clout. And Biden could have avoided war, not incited it,” he said. “Biden could have taken a plane to Moscow to talk to Putin. This is the kind of attitude you expect from a leader.”