Zelensky Responds to Trump’s Claim that Ukraine is “Corrupt”

CHRISTIANE AMANPOUR: And, recently — I mean, really recently, in November, around Thanksgiving, President Trump told FOX News: “Why should we give money to a country that’s known corrupt? It’s a very corrupt country. I mean, I love the people in Ukraine. I know Ukrainian people. They’re great people. But it’s known as being the third most corrupt country in the world.”

VOLODYMYR ZELENSKY, UKRAINIAN PRESIDENT: That’s not truth.

(APPLAUSE)

ZELENSKY: That’s not truth. When I have — when I have meeting with Mr. President Trump, and he said about that — he said that, previous years, it was so corrupt, this country, Ukraine. I told him very honestly, and I was very open with him. I told him that we fight with corruption. We fight with this, fight each day. But, please, please, stop to say that Ukraine is a corrupted country, but — because, from now, it’s not truth. We want to change this image. And all of our guys, all of our team — look at our team. Please, you have everything, I know, every — you have — you have — you can check. Stolen, yes? (INAUDIBLE) stolen, yes. What was stolen? What I did in my life, in my previous life, in my today life, what I did, all money I have, I got it with my talent. That’s it. And we have the same team, new, young team, different — not all of them young, you see.

(LAUGHTER)

ZELENSKY: We have another team in Ukraine now. And nobody — from us, we took nothing from government. So we pay all these taxes. What we did? So you have to stop do this image for Ukraine.