Former President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, who plans to run again in the 2022 Brazilian Presidential Election, believes Zelensky is equally responsible for the ongoing war. "I see the president of Ukraine, speaking on television, being applauded, getting a standing ovation by all the [European] parliamentarians," he said when speaking to Time. "This guy [Zelensky] is as responsible as Putin for the war."

Lula believes Zelensky made a fatal misstep by failing to promise he would not seek to join NATO. Furthermore, he believes that he should have negotiated a settlement with Russia's Putin long before the fighting began. "We should be having a serious conversation. OK, you were a nice comedian. But let us not make war for you to show up on TV," Lula said, claiming the Ukrainian president simply wants more fame and attention.