by Martin Fornusek

Jan 24, 2025

U.S. President-elect Donald Trump (R) speaks with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky (L) after a meeting at the Elysée Palace in Paris, France, on Dec. 7, 2024. (Mathilde Kaczkowski /Hans Lucas/AFP via Getty Images)

U.S. President Donald Trump indicated that both Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky share the blame for the Ukraine-Russia war in an interview segment with Fox News released on Jan. 23.

“Zelensky… shouldn’t have allowed this to happen either. He’s no angel,” Trump said. “First of all, he’s fighting a much bigger entity.”

Already during his electoral campaign, Trump implied that his predecessor, former U.S. President Joe Biden, and Zelensky share blame for Russia’s ongoing invasion and pledged to broker a swift peace deal.

The U.S. president, who most recently met Zelensky in Paris in December, criticized his Ukrainian counterpart for initially “wanting to fight” instead of cutting a deal. At the same time, Trump acknowledged Ukraine’s bravery in resisting Russia and said that the Ukrainian president has “had enough” and is ready for peace.

“We started pouring equipment… and they (Ukraine) had the bravery to use the equipment, but in the end, it’s a war that has to be settled,” Trump said.

Trump has been often critical of the Biden administration’s support for Ukraine and boasted about good relations with Putin, sparking concerns he might broker a deal unfavorable to Kyiv. Recently, the U.S. president has adopted a more critical stance toward Moscow, criticizing Putin for reluctance to cut a deal and threatening with economic repercussions if he fails to do so.

“Putin shouldn’t have done it (launching the full-scale invasion)… and it has to stop,” Trump said, claiming that Russia had lost around 850,000 soldiers while Ukraine lost 700,000.

Zelensky put Ukraine’s casualty rates at 43,000 killed and 370,000 wounded as of December, while Moscow does not reveal its losses.

In the interview, Trump reiterated his warnings that if Russia does not agree to negotiate, the U.S. is going to impose “massive tariffs and massive taxes, and… big sanctions,” adding he “doesn’t want to do it” because he “loves” Russia.

The U.S. president echoed his earlier claims that the full-scale invasion would have never started if he were in office at the time, blaming the Biden administration for supposedly provoking Putin and allowing him to profit from high energy prices.

Trump also lashed out against the former president for not pressuring European countries to donate more support to Ukraine, falsely claiming that Washington spent “$200 billion more than Europe.”

The U.S. Congress has allocated over $170 billion to Ukraine since the outbreak of the full-scale war in 2022, which included the provision of over $60 billion worth of military support. The EU and its member countries have made available $145 billion in financial, military, and humanitarian assistance during the full-scale war.

Ukraine recently announced that arrangements for a meeting between Trump and Zelensky are underway, while the U.S. president also said he aims to meet Putin in the coming days to discuss an end to the war.

Moscow welcomed Trump’s proposal for a meeting but voiced skepticism about a possible peace deal, saying it has to first understand what the U.S.’s goals are before entering into any negotiations.

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Comment from :

John Diwell

The only deal Putin would have accepted in 2022 was the total capitulation of Ukraine, with its end as an independent country, and its people losing their national identity and becoming more meek Russians for Putin’s war machine. So how is Trump blaming Zelensky for not accepting that deal?

Instead Zelensky has inspired his nation and led them in their fight against genocide, and worked tirelessly to build up international support for Ukraine.

Kremtroll alert ;

Pepijn

Zelensky’s efforts turned out to be a tactical victory but a strategic defeat. He rallied most of the west behind Ukraine at unprecedented levels. This is a tactical victory. Yet it eventually led to the destruction of much of Ukraine. That is a strategic defeat. Ukraine is now less sovereign than at any time during its independence and than any nation in the world frankly. It is entirely dependent on the whims of the orange man in the White House. And its economic model revolves around begging its western partners and hoping they won’t turn off the tap. That’s zero agency and zero sovereignty in effect. 

If Ukraine would have taken Putin’s deal in 2022, life for most Ukrainians would be pretty much the same as before 2022. There would be minority rights and Ukraine would understand it will never be in Nato. The irony is that Ukraine will never be in Nato regardless because most western countries are in no mood for a war with Russia. Only difference is that Ukraine still doesn’t understand that. Zelensky has been fooIish to allow neocon elements in the west to use his country as a battering ram against Russia. It’s very hard to deny that at this point.