Trump: Zelensky 'has done a terrible job'
President Trump on Wednesday ratcheted up his criticism of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, accusing him of taking advantage of the United States and saying he has done a "terrible job" leading his war-torn country.
Trump went after Zelensky and questioned U.S. support for Ukraine in its war against Russia a day after he appeared to blame the Ukrainian leader for starting the conflict. Zelensky responded to those earlier comments by saying Trump "lives in this disinformation space."
"Think of it, a modestly successful comedian, Volodymyr 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," Trump posted Wednesday on Truth Social.
He questioned why the United States has spent billions of dollars in support of Ukraine and why the Biden administration did not demand Europe put in an equal amount, given its proximity to the conflict.
"He refuses to have Elections, is very low in Ukrainian Polls, and the only thing he was good at was playing Biden 'like a fiddle,'" Trump wrote of Zelensky. "A Dictator without Elections, Zelenskyy better move fast or he is not going to have a Country left.
"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. Biden never tried, Europe has failed to bring Peace, and Zelenskyy probably wants to keep the 'gravy train' going," Trump continued. "I love Ukraine, but Zelenskyy has done a terrible job, his Country is shattered, and MILLIONS have unnecessarily died – And so it continues….."
Russia launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, after amassing troops on the border and demanding a ban on Ukraine ever joining NATO. The invasion took place nearly a decade after Russia annexed Crimea from Ukraine in 2014.
Ukraine postponed its 2024 presidential elections because of martial law being in place amid the Russian invasion.
Top Trump administration officials met Tuesday in Saudi Arabia with Russian officials in the first step toward negotiating a ceasefire agreement in Ukraine. The meeting did not include Ukrainian officials, which irked Zelensky.
Trump vowed to end the war during his presidential campaign. He has shrugged off questions about which party is at fault or whether Ukraine is an equal member of peace talks, saying he wants the killing to stop.
His rhetoric about ending the war, and the fact that he spoke with Russian President Vladimir Putin last week before talking to Zelensky, has marked a shift in posture from the Biden administration, which championed the concept of "nothing about Ukraine without Ukraine."
Trump on Tuesday was sharply critical of Zelensky when asked by reporters about the meeting in Saudi Arabia.
“Today I heard, ‘Oh, well we weren’t invited.’ Well, you’ve been there for three years,” he said of Ukraine. “You should’ve ended it in three years. You should have never started it. You could have made a deal."
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth last week called it “unrealistic” for Ukraine to return to its pre-2014 borders as part of a ceasefire agreement with Russia, or to gain NATO membership. Those comments sparked criticism, as some saw it as giving away negotiating leverage for Ukraine before peace talks began in earnest.
As of the end of fiscal year 2024, Congress had approved nearly $183 billion in Ukraine aid, according to a federal government oversight office.
A Jan. 20 release from the State Department said the U.S. had provided roughly $66 billion in military assistance to Ukraine since February 2022, as well as billions of dollars in other forms of support.
Updated at 11:35 a.m. EST
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