Donald Trump has branded the Ukrainian president a “dictator” after Volodymyr Zelenskyy said the American leader was living in a bubble of Russian disinformation.
Taking to social media, the U.S. president said Zelenskyy had “done a terrible job, his country is shattered, and millions have unnecessarily died,” appearing to apportion some of the blame for the ongoing conflict with Moscow on Kyiv.
He also reiterated his claim that Zelenskyy’s presidency was now illegitimate because no elections were held when his term came to an end in 2024.
“A Dictator without Elections, Zelenskyy better move fast or he is not going to have a country left,” Trump wrote on his Truth Social feed on Wednesday.
“In the meantime, we are successfully negotiating an end to the War with Russia, something all admit only “TRUMP,” and the Trump Administration, can do.”
The fresh broadside at Zelenskyy appears to be evidence of a growing chasm between the Ukrainian government and the U.S., a major backer of its war against Russia under the previous Joe Biden administration.
On Tuesday, American and Russian officials met in Saudi Arabia for discussion on starting peace negotiations to end the war. Ukraine was not invited.
Trump’s comments about Zelenskyy’s legitimacy came shortly after the Kremlin similarly questioned his presidency, doubling down on false claims often repeated in recent months.
According to the Ukrainian constitution, elections are not allowed under martial law and in November, the country’s parliament voted to postpone any ballot until the war’s end. Zelenskyy has vowed to hold fresh elections when the conflict is over, the BBC reported.
On Tuesday, Trump made unsubstantiated claims that the Ukrainian president had an approval rating of just 4% among Ukrainians.
He also reiterated his claim that Zelenskyy’s presidency was now illegitimate because no elections were held when his term came to an end in 2024.
“A Dictator without Elections, Zelenskyy better move fast or he is not going to have a country left,” Trump wrote on his Truth Social feed on Wednesday.
“In the meantime, we are successfully negotiating an end to the War with Russia, something all admit only “TRUMP,” and the Trump Administration, can do.”
The fresh broadside at Zelenskyy appears to be evidence of a growing chasm between the Ukrainian government and the U.S., a major backer of its war against Russia under the previous Joe Biden administration.
On Tuesday, American and Russian officials met in Saudi Arabia for discussion on starting peace negotiations to end the war. Ukraine was not invited.
‘Disinformation space’
Trump’s comments about Zelenskyy’s legitimacy came shortly after the Kremlin similarly questioned his presidency, doubling down on false claims often repeated in recent months.
According to the Ukrainian constitution, elections are not allowed under martial law and in November, the country’s parliament voted to postpone any ballot until the war’s end. Zelenskyy has vowed to hold fresh elections when the conflict is over, the BBC reported.
On Tuesday, Trump made unsubstantiated claims that the Ukrainian president had an approval rating of just 4% among Ukrainians.
Speaking to the press the following day, Zelenskyy said that “we’ve seen this disinformation, we understand that it is coming from Russia,” state news agency Ukrinform reported.
“Unfortunately, President Trump, whom we have great respect for as a leader of the American people, whom we greatly respect and who constantly supports us, lives in this disinformation space,” he said.
Trump appeared to address Zelenskyy’s “disinformation space” accusation on the issue, posting on Wednesday: "That's not a Russian thing, that's something coming from me, from other countries."
Moscow has repeatedly claimed the blame for the war – which is nearing its third anniversary - rests with Kyiv. At his Florida estate on Wednesday, Trump also suggested Ukrainian culpability for the war.
"You should have never started it," he said. “You could have made a deal. I could have made a deal for Ukraine.”
But the U.S. president’s bellicose Truth Social post, which described Zelenskyy as a “modestly successful comedian,” also took a swipe at his predecessor in the White House, Joe Biden, claiming that the Ukrainian president had played him “like a fiddle” to get funding for the war.
“Think of it.. Zelenskyy talked the United States of America into spending $350 Billion Dollars, to go into a War that couldn’t be won, that never had to start, but a War that he, without the U.S. and ‘TRUMP,’ will never be able to settle."
The post continued that “Zelenskyy admits that half of the money we sent him is 'MISSING.'”
“Unfortunately, President Trump, whom we have great respect for as a leader of the American people, whom we greatly respect and who constantly supports us, lives in this disinformation space,” he said.
Trump appeared to address Zelenskyy’s “disinformation space” accusation on the issue, posting on Wednesday: "That's not a Russian thing, that's something coming from me, from other countries."
Shifting the blame
Moscow has repeatedly claimed the blame for the war – which is nearing its third anniversary - rests with Kyiv. At his Florida estate on Wednesday, Trump also suggested Ukrainian culpability for the war.
"You should have never started it," he said. “You could have made a deal. I could have made a deal for Ukraine.”
But the U.S. president’s bellicose Truth Social post, which described Zelenskyy as a “modestly successful comedian,” also took a swipe at his predecessor in the White House, Joe Biden, claiming that the Ukrainian president had played him “like a fiddle” to get funding for the war.
“Think of it.. Zelenskyy talked the United States of America into spending $350 Billion Dollars, to go into a War that couldn’t be won, that never had to start, but a War that he, without the U.S. and ‘TRUMP,’ will never be able to settle."
The post continued that “Zelenskyy admits that half of the money we sent him is 'MISSING.'”
Speaking earlier on Wednesday, Zelenskyy said that the financial cost of the war was “clear.”
“The war has cost us $320 billion: $120 billion of that comes from us, the people of Ukraine, the taxpayers, and $200 billion from the United States and the European Union. This is the cost of weapons. This is the weapons package -- $320 billion.”
The U.S., he added, has allocated $67 billion in security assistance and $31.5 billion as direct financial assistance to the Ukrainian budget.
As the Washington-Kyiv spat intensifies, independent U.S. senator and former presidential candidate Bernie Sanders took a swipe at Trump on the X platform:
“Trump and his American oligarchs are now openly aligning themselves with Putin and his Russian oligarchs," he posted.
“This Putin-Trump alliance means abandoning our allies, supporting authoritarianism and undermining our democratic traditions.”
“The war has cost us $320 billion: $120 billion of that comes from us, the people of Ukraine, the taxpayers, and $200 billion from the United States and the European Union. This is the cost of weapons. This is the weapons package -- $320 billion.”
The U.S., he added, has allocated $67 billion in security assistance and $31.5 billion as direct financial assistance to the Ukrainian budget.
Trump ‘abandoning our allies’: Sanders
As the Washington-Kyiv spat intensifies, independent U.S. senator and former presidential candidate Bernie Sanders took a swipe at Trump on the X platform:
“Trump and his American oligarchs are now openly aligning themselves with Putin and his Russian oligarchs," he posted.
“This Putin-Trump alliance means abandoning our allies, supporting authoritarianism and undermining our democratic traditions.”
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