Two US senators were accused of ‘appalling and reckless ignorance’ following claims they’d breached the security of Volodymyr Zelensky.
Republican senators Marco Rubio and Steve Daines tweeted screenshots from a Senate video meeting on Saturday morning with Ukraine’s president.
This was despite the fact they were specifically warned not to do so by the Ukrainian ambassador.
‘On Zoom call now with President Zelensky of Ukraine,’ Rubio posted with a photo of the Ukrainian leader, with Daines following suit just minutes later.
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Democratic Rep Dean Phillips wrote tweeted that all lawmakers had been asked not to post anything online during the virtual meeting in order to ‘protect the security’ of the politician.
He said: ‘The Ukrainian Ambassador very intentionally asked each of us on the zoom to NOT share anything on social media during the meeting to protect the security of President Zelenskyy. Appalling and reckless ignorance by two US Senators.’
Democratic Rep Jason Crow also took to social media to criticise his fellow lawmakers, saying: ‘The lack of discipline in Congress is truly astounding.
‘If an embattled wartime leader asks you to keep quiet about a meeting, you better keep quiet about the meeting. I’m not saying a damn thing. Lives are at stake.’
It comes after reports Zelensky had survived at least three assassination attempts by elite Chechen forces and mercenaries linked to the Wagner Group in Kyiv.
After receiving significant backlash on social media, Rubio hit back, claiming his critics were just ‘seeking clicks’.
‘There were over 160 members of Congress on a widely reported Zoom call’, his spokesperson told Newsweek.
‘There was no identifying information of any kind. Anybody pretending this tweet is a security concern is a partisan seeking clicks.’
During the call with 280 lawmakers, Zelensky insisted Ukraine’ air force was destroyed on the first day of Vladimir Putin’s invasion, a member of Congress said to be on the video call claimed.
The battle is often ‘won in the air’, the leader apparently warned, as he thanked America for the existing sanctions placed on Russia.
The prospect of a no-fly zone over Ukraine was also raised, as Moscow warns it would consider this as NATO having ‘participation in the armed conflict’.
In dramatic remarks, Zelensky also warned Putin will target NATO members Poland and Lithuania next.
Metro.co.uk has contacted Rubio and Daines for a comment.
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