The tensions between U.S. President Donald Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy have reached a boiling point following the recent U.S.-Russian talks in Saudi Arabia. 🇺🇸🇺🇦
Zelenskyy accused Trump of succumbing to Russian \"disinformation,\" while Trump fired back by labeling Zelenskyy as \"a dictator without elections.\" 🔥
Amidst frustration over Ukraine's exclusion from the high-level negotiations in Riyadh, senior representatives from both nations agreed to work towards ending the three-year Russia-Ukraine conflict and restoring bilateral relations without Ukraine's participation.
Trump vs. Zelenskyy: Who Said What?
Speaking to reporters after the talks, Trump dismissed concerns about Kyiv's exclusion from the negotiations. \"Today I heard, 'Oh, we weren't invited.' Well, you've been there for three years. You should have ended it three years ago. You should have never started it. You could have made a deal,\" he stated at Mar-a-Lago in Palm Beach, Florida.
Trump also claimed that Zelenskyy's approval rating was just 4 percent, despite a recent Reuters/Ipsos survey showing that 57 percent of Ukrainians trust Zelenskyy.
In response, Zelenskyy accused Trump of spreading \"a lot of disinformation coming from Russia.\" He emphasized, \"Unfortunately, President Trump, with all due respect for him as the leader of a nation we greatly respect, is living in this disinformation bubble.\" 🗣️
Trump escalated his rhetoric on his Truth Social platform, calling Zelenskyy a \"dictator\" who \"has done a terrible job.\" He added, \"I love Ukraine, but Zelenskyy has done a terrible job. His country is shattered, and MILLIONS have unnecessarily died – and so it continues.\" 🇺🇸🇺🇦
Despite the heated exchanges, there are signs of potential reconciliation. Zelenskyy recently had a \"productive meeting\" with Keith Kellogg, the U.S. special envoy for Ukraine and Russia, in Kyiv. He expressed readiness to sign \"a strong, effective investment and security agreement\" with the U.S. 🤝
(With input from agencies)
Reference(s):
cgtn.com
