Tucker Carlson Teases Volodymyr Zelensky Interview

Conservative pundit Tucker Carlson teased on Wednesday that he may have secured an interview with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.

Carlson in February traveled to Moscow to interview Russian President Vladimir Putin about the war, becoming the first Western journalist to do so since the conflict began in February 2022.

"Looks like we've got the Zelenskyy interview. We've been trying for two years, and with particular intensity after interviewing Putin in February," the former Fox News host said on X, formerly Twitter.

The Context

Before Carlson's departure from Fox News last year, he had faced criticism from the left on several issues, including his criticism of Zelensky and his stance on the war in Ukraine, which had earned him praise among Kremlin propagandists.

Carlson was the host of Fox News' Tucker Carlson Tonight from 2016 to 2023 before he was fired by the network last April, with no official explanation given by his employer.

What We Know

Carlson said he aims to "bring Americans much-needed information about the conflict that's completely reshaping their country's position in the world."

Ukraine hasn't commented on Carlson's claims. Newsweek has contacted Ukraine's Foreign Ministry and the Tucker Carlson Network for comment by email.

After Carlson's two-hour sit-down interview with the Russian president in February, Putin told Russian journalist Pavel Aleksandrovich Zarubin on state-television channel Russia-1 that he thought he would be asked tougher questions.

"To be honest, I thought that he would behave aggressively and ask so-called sharp questions. I was not just prepared for this, I wanted it, because it would give me the opportunity to respond in the same way," Putin said.

Putin added that he did not "feel full satisfaction from this interview."

Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov told reporters in February that Putin agreed to be interviewed by Carlson because "he has a position which differs" from other Western media.

Views

Carlson's announcement was met with mixed reaction on social media.

Ukrainian journalist Illia Ponomarenko said on X that he thinks Zelensky sitting down for an interview with Tucker "is a good idea" because "there is no question Ukraine can't give a fair answer to."

"And unlike Putin, a Ukrainian wartime leader has no need to crack freakishly weird mumbo-jumbo pseudo-historical freak Viking era theories to explain why Ukraine fights for survival in the largest European war of aggression since Hitler and why it is so important to help Ukraine win," Ponomarenko wrote.

Others raised concerns that the interview may be edited by Carlson's team "to give the public a false representation of the interview."

"Zelensky needs someone to video the whole interview because you can bet it will be a trap... they'll change it and use for propaganda purposes," one X user wrote.

Another wrote: "I'm more concerned about how they will doctor his answers in the final edit."

What's Next?

Carlson didn't provide a timeline on when to expect an interview with the Ukrainian leader.

"Coming soon we hope," he said.

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