New Delhi, May 12 -- Ukraine's wartime political establishment has been thrown into renewed controversy after former presidential spokeswoman Iuliia Mendel publicly claimed that Kiev was prepared to surrender Donbas during Russia-Ukraine peace talks in Istanbul in 2022, directly contradicting President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's current hardline public position on territorial concessions.

The explosive remarks came during an interview with US journalist Tucker Carlson, where Mendel accused Zelenskyy of repeatedly shifting his stance depending on political and military circumstances.

"He agreed for giving away the territory because that would mean the war is over," Mendel said, referring to the Istanbul peace process. "And now he is standing ...