Bear Grylls’ chocolate offer to Volodymyr Zelenskyy seen as assassination risk

Kyiv: They say never to accept food from strangers. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s security team took this advice seriously when they warned him not to accept an offer of chocolate from survival expert Bear Grylls over fears of assassination. In an interview with Good Morning Britain, Grylls, 48, revealed that Zelenskyy’s security team was not happy when he offered a chocolate bar to the president. The adventurist travelled to Ukraine to document the war-hit country and held an interview with Zelenskyy on the streets of Kyiv.

“I get it. Normally when I have done this before with world leaders, the wild does half my job for me - it’s a great leveller. It is a great ice-breaker - you are out in the mountains,” said Grylls. As soon as Grylls made the offer, Zelenskyy’s security team stepped in and refused the request anticipating an assassination attempt on the president. How did Bear convince Zelenskyy? After facing rejection, the world-famous survivalist went on to prove his innocence by having some the chocolate. “When I offered it to Zelensky, one of his guys stepped in and said he shouldn’t be eating it,” Grylls recalled. He added, “I said, ‘Ok, I’ll go first, to show I’m not out to poison him,’ and we all laughed. I gave some to the security guys, because everyone likes a little square of Dairy Milk, right?”

Talking about his time in Ukraine, Grylls said, “I had the privilege to travel to Ukraine’s capital, Kyiv, and spend time with President Zelensky. It has been an experience for me like no other. As the country goes into winter, and with their infrastructure under attack, survival for millions of people is a very real daily struggle. Through this special programme the world will see a side of President Zelensky that has never been shown before. What I wanted to ask was how he was really coping… I got so much more.” Assassination attempts on Zelenskyy Previous assassination attempts on the Ukrainian president and an ongoing war proves that the task of protecting him is crucial. Soon after Russia launched its special military operation in Ukraine, Zelenskyy survived three assassination attempts. According to The Times, reports by Ukrainian officials reveal that two different Russian groups were sent to kill the president – the Wagner Group and Chechen rebels. Read all the  Latest News ,  Trending News ,  Cricket News ,  Bollywood News , India News  and  Entertainment News  here. Follow us on  Facebook,  Twitter and  Instagram.