U.S. President Donald Trump has issued sharp criticism of both Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy amid escalating tensions in the ongoing conflict.
Speaking to reporters on Sunday before departing from Morristown, New Jersey to Washington, D.C. on Air Force One, Trump expressed his dissatisfaction with Putin’s recent actions. “I’m not happy with what Putin’s doing,” he said. “I don’t know what the hell happened to Putin. I’ve known him a long time. Always gotten along with him. But he’s sending rockets into cities and killing people, and I don’t like it at all.”
Trump’s remarks came after reports of large-scale drone and missile attacks between Russia and Ukraine. The Russian Defense Ministry announced on Sunday that it had intercepted and destroyed 110 Ukrainian drones across various regions overnight, including 13 over the Moscow region. Meanwhile, Kyiv authorities reported that at least 12 people, including three children, were killed and dozens injured in a combined missile-drone attack launched by Russia early Sunday.
Later on Sunday evening, Trump took to his social media platform, Truth Social, to further condemn Putin’s actions, declaring that the Russian leader “has gone absolutely CRAZY!”
Turning his attention to Zelenskyy, Trump criticized the Ukrainian president’s recent statements regarding U.S. silence on the latest Russian attacks. “He is doing his country no favors by talking the way he does,” Trump said. “Everything out of his mouth causes problems. I don’t like it, and it better stop.”
The president emphasized that he should not be blamed by Ukraine, stating, “This is Zelenskyy’s, Putin’s, and Biden’s war, not Trump’s.” He also suggested the possibility of imposing more sanctions on Russia in response to the ongoing attacks.
There was no immediate response from the Kremlin or Zelenskyy’s office regarding Trump’s comments.
Trump has been pressuring Russia and Ukraine to end the more than three-year conflict. However, the two sides remain far apart, and while major powers engage in talks, the conflict is intensifying, with Russian forces advancing in eastern Ukraine.
