Vadym Prystayko was engaged in diplomacy for almost 30 years. He held positions in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, worked as an ambassador to Canada, and was the head of the Ukrainian mission to NATO.
After the election of Volodymyr Zelenskyi as president, Prystaiko became the Minister of Foreign Affairs, and later the Deputy Prime Minister for Euro-Atlantic Integration.
He did not manage to last long in the Zelensky government. Already in June 2020, the president sent him as ambassador to Great Britain.
After the start of the full-scale war, Prystaiko had the highest level of access to London's top politicians. He was in direct contact with Prime Minister Boris Johnson, and then with Rishi Sunak. His work, in particular, helped Ukraine to receive such important support from Britain in 2022.
In the summer of 2023, in a conversation with journalists, British Defense Minister Ben Wallace said that Ukraine should be more grateful for the help provided by its partners. To this, Zelensky quite rudely replied that "we can wake up in the morning and thank the minister personally."
In an interview with Sky News, Prystayk was asked to comment on this scandal. "Unhealthy sarcasm is not needed between friendly countries," he answered diplomatically at the time.
The ambassador's reaction made the President's Office quite angry. Zelensky fired the ambassador of Ukraine to Britain. Without special explanations and long goodbyes.
Now Prystayko lives in Kyiv and no longer has anything to do with the diplomatic service.
"There is no place for former ministers in the central apparatus of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs ," the former ambassador to Great Britain tells UP with a smile.
Prystayko comments on Valery Zaluzhny's transfer to the diplomatic service in an interview with "Ukrainian Pravda":
"It is very positive that the UK will finally have a Ukrainian ambassador.
Zaluzhnyi's candidacy has been considered for some time. I think that many Ukrainians will be happy that the "iron general" will continue to do what he did - the defense of Ukraine. But this time in Great Britain.
The first biggest challenge that awaits Zaluzhnyi is to cope with the wave of popularity, because in Britain he is expected, appreciated and well known for who he is.
But when the euphoria passes, I believe that one of the biggest tasks that will be faced by the general will be to restore and breathe new life into the support that our partners provide."
The British side learned about the appointment of the former commander-in-chief of the Armed Forces Valery Zaluzhnyi as ambassador to Britain from the media. President Zelenskyi announced this decision even before the official consent of Great Britain.
Prystaiko emphasized that the message of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated that a request for coordination was sent, but no public confirmation was received.
"But I don't think it has any significance in the context of General Zaluzhnyi. This is a famous person. Great Britain will gladly accept such a person.
It will not be easy for Valery Fedorovych to switch from a military man to a diplomat at first. But I am sure that it will be not only a successful mission, but also something new in general."
