Ukr. leader: No quid pro quo

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky denied once again that President Trump used nearly $400 million in military aid as a bargaining chip to pressure him to launch investigations into former Vice President Joe Biden and Ukraine’s role in the 2016 US election.

“I never talked to the president from the position of a quid pro quo. That’s not my thing,” Zelensky told Time magazine in an interview published Monday. “I don’t want us to look like beggars.

“But you have to understand. We’re at war. If you’re our strategic partner, then you can’t go blocking anything for us. I think that’s just about fairness. It’s not about a quid pro quo. It just goes without saying.”

Trump touted the development as “breaking news.”

“The President of Ukraine has just again announced that President Trump has done nothing wrong with respect to Ukraine and our interactions or calls,” Trump posted on Twitter.

The military aid, which was approved by Congress in January and eventually released on Sept. 11, supports Ukraine’s fight against Russian-backed separatists in the eastern part of the country.

In the interview, Zelensky was asked about Trump’s claim that he held up the military assistance to ensure that Ukraine was taking steps to combat rampant corruption.

“I don’t need to change his mind. During my meeting with him, I said that I don’t want our country to have this image. For that, all he has to do is come and have a look at what’s happening, how we live, what kinds of people we are,” Zelensky said. “I had the sense that he heard me . . . At least during the meeting, he said, ‘Yes, I see, you’re young, you’re new, and so on.’ ”

In October, Zelensky said he was unaware that the military aid was suspended when he spoke to Trump in July.

“There was no blackmail. I had no idea the military aid was held up,” he said at a news conference.