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Donald Trump leaned into his personal feud with Ukraine’s Volodymyr Zelensky on Sunday.
The US president sat down for an interview with Fox News and reacted to criticism of his conduct during an Oval Office meeting with the Ukrainian leader more than a week ago in which Trump and Vice President JD Vance appeared to gang up on the European leader.
On Sunday, Trump reiterated that he thought Zelensky wasn’t “grateful” and added that he “took candy from a baby” — his description of the Biden administration’s policy of military and political support for Ukraine’s military.
The president also seemed to deride the Ukrainian leader’s assertion that service members in his country’s armed forces were serving the country bravely, as he dismissively recalled Zelensky “talking about the fact that they have fought and there’s […] bravery because somebody has to use those [US-supplied] weapons.”
“He’s a smart guy, and he’s a tough guy.” Trump said of Zelensky. “He took money out of this country, under [Joe] Biden, like candy from a baby.”
Trump on Zelensky: “I just don’t think he’s grateful. We gave him, in my opinion, $350 billion…He’s talking about the fact that they have fought and there’s a bravery because somebody has to use those weapons.” pic.twitter.com/b1KBefZyQi
He was asked by Sunday Morning Futures host Maria Bartiromo about critics who claimed that he was easing up political pressure on Russia.
“Nobody has been tougher on Russia than Donald Trump,” declared the president (after an extended rant about “the Russia, Russia, Russia, hoax”. “Remember, I’m the one that stopped the pipeline — Nord Stream 2.”
Trump’s record with that specific project is a bit spotty; he fought with Congress over sanctions on Russia aimed at preventing its construction. Eventually, the House and Senate forced his hand by including the sanctions as part of a yearly defense bill.
His successor, Joe Biden, waived some of those sanctions upon taking office in an effort to reengage European leaders alienated during Trump’s first four years in office. But the Biden administration kept up pressure on the project, which was eventually halted formally by Germany’s chancellor after the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
And some reports have indicated that his administration could be interested in cutting a deal with Russia in 2025 that would allow for the project to resume.
A gleeful Kremlin spokesperson declared in recent days that the US policy on Ukraine was shifting to entirely match the Russian government’s position.
“The new administration is rapidly changing all foreign policy configurations,” Dmitry Peskov said on Russian state TV earlier in March.
But that could soon change. In a post to Truth Social on Friday, Trump threatened to impose further sanctions on Russia over a renewed offensive launched against Ukrainian defenders and civilians this past week. Blame for the effectiveness of the Russian attacks has been laid at the feet of the Republican president by some of his critics as it closely follows the confirmation by news outlets that US intelligence agencies had ceased real-time intel sharing with their Ukraininan counterparts, a key element aiding Ukraine’s air defenses.
On the same day, he added to reporters in the Oval Office that Ukraine was, in his mind, the greater obstacle towards ending the war. The US president has repeated that he believes Russia’s Vladimir Putin is ready for peace, though US intelligence assessments have stated otherwise.
“I’m finding it more difficult, frankly, to deal with Ukraine. They don’t have the cards,” he said.
Some European countries including France and the UK have responded with calls for increased European support for Ukraine, though experts say other Nato countries will likely be unable to bring to bear the same capabilities as their US allies.
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