United States President, Donald Trump, stated on Friday that he finds it “easier” to deal with Russia than Ukraine in efforts to end the ongoing war in the pro-Western country.
In a televised press conference at the White House, Trump expressed that he trusted Russian President Vladimir Putin.
“I believe him,” Trump said when asked about his relationship with Putin. “I’m finding it more difficult frankly to deal with Ukraine and they don’t have the cards,” he continued. “It may be easier dealing with Russia.”
Trump has been a vocal critic of Ukraine’s handling of the war, which has seen the country fighting a Russian invasion for nearly three years. He has also called for a pause in US military and intelligence assistance to Kyiv to apply more pressure on the Ukrainian government.
Despite threatening new sanctions on Russia earlier in the day, Trump said he understood why Putin’s forces had launched a massive bombing campaign across Ukraine overnight. “I actually think he’s doing what anybody in that position would be doing right now,” Trump remarked.
“I’ve always had a good relationship with Putin. And you know, he wants to end the war,” Trump said. “I think he’s going to be more generous than he has to be, and that’s pretty good. That means a lot of good things.”
Trump also voiced concern over Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky’s demands for Western security guarantees before agreeing to a ceasefire with Russia. He warned that if Zelensky and his government were unwilling to settle, the US might reduce its involvement.
“I don’t know that they want to settle. If they don’t want to settle, we’re out of there because we want them to settle. I’m doing it to stop death,” Trump stated.
