Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy accused the US and President Donald Trump of showing “weakness” through the agreement on Russian fuel in the American and global market amid the growing energy crisis. Now Trump is striking back at Zelenskyy, who remains in power despite his official term having expired and the presidential election being postponed due to the war. During a press briefing, Trump explicitly said that Ukraine needs a new president.
The latest exchange is yet another chapter in the long-frosty relationship between the two presidents, who have several times found themselves in open conflict.
The most notable was the heated argument in the White House, where both Trump and Vice President JD Vance, in front of the world press, accused Zelenskyy of showing insufficient gratitude for the extensive US support and of not being willing enough to negotiate peace with Russia.
The diplomatic meeting escalated into a well-publicized confrontation that highlighted the deep divisions between the White House and Zelenskyy in Kyiv over the war and the path to peace.
Accuses Trump of “weakness”
On Friday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy commented on the US announcement to start purchasing fuel from Russia in order to lower American fuel prices ahead of the midterm elections.
In a lengthy social media post, he criticized the deal and described it as a sign of “weakness” towards Russia.
“You know, it looks like a birthday present for Putin. It looks absolutely terrible,” Zelenskyy told Axios.
READ MORE: Zelenskyy furious as Trump opens US market to Russian fuel: “Weakness”
On Saturday, Trump fired back and accused Zelenskyy of complicating the prospects for peace with Russia while also contributing to record-high diesel prices in the US.
“He wants to create problems for the world. He wants to create problems for our farmers and ranchers when it comes to diesel fuel,” Trump said.
The American president also claimed that Ukraine has lost significantly more of its territory than previously reported in the media. He also stated that the country has lost over one million people in the war, a figure that far exceeds the loss statistics released by Ukraine itself.
“Zelenskyy has lost 30 percent of his country and over a million people; in total, more than two million people have been killed on both sides. It is a war that never should have started,” said Trump, continuing:
“And I think it’s time for Ukraine to get a new president. Because he could have made many deals, but for some reason, he never does.”
Fed up with the attacks
According to Axios, there is meanwhile another explanation for Trump’s decision to enter a fuel deal with Russia. An American official with direct knowledge says that the president grew weary and made the decision after Zelenskyy repeatedly rejected the White House’s demands to cease attacks on Russian oil refineries.
The Trump administration believes that the strikes drive up fuel prices in the US and create further instability in the international market, while Ukraine insists that any such halt must be mutual and also include Russia’s attacks on Ukrainian power plants.
Trump also reiterated his previous claim that Russia’s invasion of Ukraine would never have happened if he himself had been president in 2022.
“That war would never have started. There was no reason for that war between Ukraine and Russia to begin. It started because of incompetence,” Trump said.
Watch the press briefing here: