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Zelensky's smartphone pledge amid Ukraine crisis diplomacy
Summary
A look back at 8 February 2022, when a domestic promise to older, vaccinated Ukrainians sat alongside Western diplomacy over the Russo-Ukrainian crisis.
What did Ukraine's leadership talk about on 8 February 2022, as the Russo-Ukrainian crisis dominated international diplomacy? One answer was a smartphone offer. President Volodymyr Zelensky said that vaccinated Ukrainians over the age of 60 would receive a free, good-quality, modern smartphone.
The announcement was a domestic matter, but it came amid intense diplomatic activity elsewhere over Ukraine.
Diplomacy in the days before
On 7 February 2022, German chancellor Olaf Scholz met U.S. president Joe Biden during his first visit to the United States as chancellor. They discussed the situation in Ukraine, and Scholz said Germany would be "acting together" with the United States if Russia invaded Ukraine.
On 6 February 2022, French President Emmanuel Macron said a deal to "avoid war in Ukraine" was "within reach". He also said it was legitimate for Russia to raise its own security concerns with NATO. Macron was due to meet Vladimir Putin in Moscow on 7 February.
A day of contrasts
Taken together, the reports from those days show two tracks running side by side. Western leaders were coordinating their positions and exploring possible agreements over the crisis. Meanwhile, Zelensky's announcement on 8 February 2022 addressed a different audience: older Ukrainians who had been vaccinated.
