Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said that Donald Trump should use the same tough rhetoric towards Vladimir Putin that he uses towards the Ukrainian president. He also called for stronger sanctions against Russia and criticised Washington’s attempts to shift responsibility for the war onto Ukraine.
Volodymyr Zelenskyy made the remarks in an interview with Steven Bartlett.
According to Zelenskyy, Trump should change his approach to dealing with the Russian president and use the same rhetoric towards him that he uses towards Ukraine.
“Trump should use the same rhetoric towards Putin that he uses towards me,” Zelenskyy said.
He recalled that the US Congress had voted for tough sanctions against Russia, which the American president could impose.
“I don’t know why he isn’t doing it. Maybe they have a special relationship. Maybe it’s something else. I can only speculate,” Zelenskyy said.
The Ukrainian president suggested that Trump had, and still has, a special relationship with Putin. He said their friendship might have prevented the full-scale invasion, but it would not have changed the Russian president’s ultimate goal of occupying Ukraine.
Zelenskyy also described as unfair Trump’s statements blaming him for Russian aggression and the killings caused by the war.
In the Ukrainian president’s view, the US leader is trying to divert attention from the situation in Iran and the Middle East, particularly the blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, by shifting responsibility for rising diesel prices in the United States onto Ukraine.
Speaking about peace negotiations, Zelenskyy stressed that Ukraine was already prepared to make a major compromise — agreeing to a ceasefire and beginning talks based on the current front line.
“When President Trump says we need to find a compromise, believe me, a ceasefire and the willingness to sit down at the negotiating table is a huge compromise,” he said.
According to Zelenskyy, he has repeatedly tried to explain to Trump how difficult it would be for Ukraine even to agree to halt hostilities along the current front line.
