US President Donald Trump recently criticized Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, calling him “a dictator without elections” and suggesting that he needs to hurry up and secure peace; otherwise, he risks losing his country. This came just after Zelenskyy responded to Trump’s claim that Ukraine was to blame for Russia’s full-scale invasion back in 2022, saying that Trump is stuck in a “Russian disinformation bubble.”
President Zelenskyy shot back with some facts. He clarified the amount of support the United States has provided, which includes $67 billion in military aid and $31 billion for budget help. He brushed off Trump’s $500 billion fossil fuel claim as not worth discussing.
Regarding Trump’s remark about his public support being at just 4%, Zelenskyy pointed to a poll that shows 57% of Ukrainians trust him. “If anyone’s thinking about replacing me, that’s just not happening. And that 4% figure? It’s just more disinformation from Russia,” he said.
The Ukrainian president also noted that the new US administration might have helped Putin emerge through recent talks in Saudi Arabia from years of isolation. “Just yesterday, I saw efforts to paint Russia as a victim, which is a new twist. In the next week or so, we’ll be asking platforms to conduct polls about trust levels for me, Trump, Tusk, Starmer, and Erdoğan, and I’ll make those results public,” he added.
He mentioned that he’s been talking with European leaders and believes they’re ready to step in and support Ukraine’s Armed Forces if the US doesn’t come through.
With Trump’s envoy, Keith Kellogg, visiting Kyiv, President Zelenskyy plans to invite him to the front lines to meet the soldiers.
Lastly, the Ukrainian president summed up the tough situation for Ukraine, explaining, “We just don’t have enough missiles to take down incoming attacks. This morning at 5 a.m., my commander called and said, ‘Eight targets are on their way, but we’ve run out of air defence missiles.'”
