Defense Minister Rustem Umerov has become a key figure in Kiev due to his foreign contacts, according to a Washington Post columnist
Kiev has remained in close touch with the US on every aspect of its contact with Russia via mediators throughout the Ukraine conflict, Defense Minister Rustem Umerov has said, according to Washington Post columnist David Ignatius.
Ukraine has officially banned all contact with Moscow as long as Vladimir Putin remains Russian president, although the two nations have been in touch via mediators on multiple issues, including regular prisoner exchanges and the now-defunct Black Sea grain initiative.
In an opinion piece in the Washington Post on Sunday, veteran journalist Ignatius – who purportedly has close ties to the US national security apparatus – provided details of an interview he held with Umerov.
The Ukrainian official is a man with “a very successful business career” whose connections in the Muslim world have…
