US President Donald Trump has again landed in controversy after he lambasted Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s moves to strengthen his nation’s air defense while de-emphasizing Russia’s lethal airstrikes. At least 35 civilians were killed in Sumy, a city in the Ukrainian territory, during a Russian missile attack on Sunday. In return, Zelenskyy reaffirmed that Ukraine intends to buy US-produced Patriot air defense systems in order to safeguard its people.
But, addressing the White House on Monday, Trump accused Zelenskyy of warmongering, saying the Ukrainian president is “always looking to buy missiles.” He also falsely accused Zelenskyy of starting the war with Russia. “When you begin a war, you have to know you can win it. You don’t begin a war with someone 20 times your size and then expect people to give you missiles,” Trump said.
Trump also waved off the Russian bombing of Sumy as a “mistake,” even as there was a high civilian death toll. He went on, “It was terrible. I was told they made a mistake.”
On Truth Social, Trump went even further, claiming that “President Zelenskyy and Crooked Joe Biden did a horrible job in allowing this travesty to begin,” repeating a trend of spreading disinformation about the origins of the war. In fact, the war started when Russian President Vladimir Putin issued the order to invade Ukraine on February 24, 2022.
Zelenskyy, on his part, insists on his defense strategies. During an interview, he announced Ukraine’s plan to buy 10 Patriot systems, priced at $1.5 billion each. “We are prepared to pay for everything. We will find the money,” he stated, specifying that Ukraine does not ask for donations, but a straight buy to safeguard its citizens from further Russian aggression.
