Day after ‘weak intellect’ remark, Ukraine issues clarification
Podolyak's statement was published Russian news agency Sputnik on Wednesday, which quoted him saying that India and China had weak intellectual potential
A day after Ukraine's presidential adviser Mykhailo Podolyak made a controversial remark against India and China saying that the two countries had ‘weak intellectual potential’, Ukraine issued a clarification on Thursday.
Adviser to the Head of the Office of the Ukrainian President Volodymr Zelenskyy, Podolyaka said on Thursday that India, China and Turkey were “justified” in playing a bigger role in the world.
Podolyak's statement was published Russian news agency Sputnik on Wednesday, which quoted him saying that India and China had weak intellectual potential and they ‘fail to analyze the consequences of their actions’.
Issuing a clarification, Podolyak said, “Of course, Turkey, India, China, and other regional powers are increasingly and clearly justified in claiming global roles in the modern world - and there are all the reasons for this: historical, economic, cultural, scientific, and political. And these roles have long been much more extensive than Russia’s. But the global world is much broader than even the most thoughtful regional national interests.”
Earlier, Ukraine's foreign minister snubbed the G-20 Summit held in India and said that it was “nothing to be proud of”.
Podolyak said, “What’s the problem with China, India, etc. - they are not able to analyze the consequences of their actions - these countries have low intellectual potential, unfortunately. Yes, they invest in science. Yes, India has launched a lunar rover recently which is now trekking on the surface of the Moon, but that does not indicate that this country fully comprehends what the modern world is about.”
His statements sparked outrage across the globe among Indians and from people from several developing countries.
In April this year, Ukrainian authorities faced heavy backlash after the Defense of Ukraine's Twitter account posted a picture of Hindu goddess Kali posing as late actor Marilyn Monroe's famous pose.
Since the Ukraine-Russia war began, India has continually maintained a diplomatic position. While the country has called for the war to be ended, India has not imposed any sanctions on Russia.
The declaration signed at the recent G-20 Summit under India's presidency attained 100 per cent consensus. However, it did not mention Russia as a perpetrator of the war or talk about the war in Ukraine.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov claimed it was a diplomatic victory and deemed the summit a success. He said, “We were able to prevent the West's attempts to 'Ukrainize' the summit agenda.”
Ukrainian foreign ministry had said that the summit declaration was “nothing to be proud of” and criticised it for not mentioning Ukraine-Russia war.