Donald Trump Backs Putin, Says Zelenskyy ‘Not Ready For Peace’ After Ugly Verbal Duel- wna24

Washington: After a heated war of words between US President Trump and Ukrainian President Zelenskyy in what was supposed to be a meeting for peace, Trump slammed Zelenskyy for not agreeing to an immediate ceasefire. In an address to reporters, the US President expressed support for Russian President Putin and criticized Zelenskyy for his refusal to agree to a ceasefire.

The President also stated that the Ukrainian president does not need to say negative things about Putin to “make peace.”

While speaking to US reporters, President Trump remarked: “He’s (Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy ) got to say, ‘I want to make peace.’ He doesn’t have to stand there and say all these negative things about Putin. He’s got to say, ‘I want to make peace.'”

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Trump emphasized that he wanted the war to end immediately, stating, “I don’t want to fight a war any longer. His people are dying,” referring to Zelenskyy’s continued resistance.

“They should have an immediate ceasefire… A ceasefire could take place immediately. If you want to end the war, you sign up for an agreement that’s going to take a period of time. It takes time,” he added.

He further stated that the US will not “keep fighting” if Zelenskyy does not agree to a deal. He also argued that Zelenskyy does not have the “cards” to end the war, suggesting the situation could only be resolved through a negotiated deal.

“He doesn’t have the cards… I don’t trust or distrust anybody. I just want to get a deal done. If the deal happens, good. But you can’t embolden somebody who does not have the cards… We are not going to keep fighting. We are going to get the war done or let them go and see what happens. Let them fight it out,” Trump said.

According to Trump, winning the war without US support will not be easy. He said, “Well, all of a sudden, he is a big shot because he has the US on his side. Either we’re going to end it or let him fight it out. And if he fights it out, it’s not going to be pretty easy, because without us, he doesn’t win.”

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Reiterating that Zelenskyy is losing thousands of soldiers, Trump added: “I want anybody that’s going to make peace, if he is capable of making peace, which he may or may not be. But I want somebody who’s going to make peace again. He doesn’t have the cards. When we sign up, he’s got all of the cards, but that doesn’t mean he can fight. He’s got to stop the fighting, stop the death. He is losing hundreds of thousands of soldiers. It’s time to stop the death.”

Taking a jibe at his Ukrainian counterpart, Trump said Zelenskyy is “not a man that wanted peace.”

“That was not a man (Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy) who wanted to make peace, and I am only interested if he (Zelenskyy) wants to end the bloodshed,” Trump stated.

US Vice President JD Vance, who was also present at the Oval Office meeting, told Zelenskyy that diplomacy is necessary to end the war and advised him to be more grateful for Trump’s efforts to prevent Ukraine from being wiped out by Russia.

As per a Reuters report, Zelenskyy had viewed the Oval Office meeting as an opportunity to convince the United States not to side with Russian President Vladimir Putin , who ordered the invasion of Ukraine three years ago.