Zelensky’s Time award ‘Russophobic,’ says Kremlin

The Kremlin on Thursday said Time magazine’s decision to name Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky as “Person of the Year” reflected “Russophobic” trends in Western countries.

The comments came after Zelensky was ranked “Person of the Year” by the magazine on Wednesday and the “Most Influential” person in Europe by Politico on Thursday.

Time noted its choice to nominate Zelensky was “the most clear-cut in memory”, hailing the leader’s decision to remain in Kyiv and rally his country amid Russia’s offensive.

“The publication’s editorial line does not go beyond the European mainstream, which is absolutely blinkered, anti-Russian and frantically Russophobic,” Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said.

The military operation has proved transformative for the 44-year-old former comedian, catapulting him from embattled leader of a struggling European outlier to a global household name and standard-bearer of opposition to Russian leader Vladimir Putin.

He has rallied Western support for his country in almost daily foreign calls and meetings.

Putin, who was Time’s person of the year in 2007, is increasingly isolated from the West.