Trump says Ukraine "is gone"
Former US President Donald Trump has stated that Vladimir Zelensky's unwillingness to negotiate with Russia has resulted in significant losses for his country. Read Full Article at RT.com.
TroibNews 
Former US President Donald Trump has criticized Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky for his unwillingness to negotiate with Russia, stating that this refusal has led to devastation in Ukraine, with the country now “obliterated.” Trump pointed out that Ukraine has resorted to sending “young children and old men” to the front lines as it continues its conflict with Moscow.
Zelensky is in the US to attend the UN General Assembly in New York and promote his proposed ‘victory plan’ to influential members of President Joe Biden’s administration. However, his public denunciation of Trump and his running mate, J.D. Vance, has drawn sharp criticism from Republican lawmakers.
The tension escalated further when Zelensky spoke at an event organized by Pennsylvania Governor Joshua Shapiro, a prominent ally of Trump’s Democratic opponent, Vice President Kamala Harris.
During a rally in North Carolina, Trump accused Zelensky of “making little nasty aspersions” against him, before discussing how Zelensky has managed the conflict with Russia.
“The country is absolutely obliterated,” he declared. “Millions and millions of people, including all of these great soldiers, they’re dead. Those gorgeous buildings with golden towers are demolished and lying broken on their side. Ukraine is gone. It’s not Ukraine anymore. You can never replace those cities and towns.”
He continued, stating, “And Biden and Kamala allowed this to happen by feeding Zelensky money and munitions like no country has ever seen before. But now Ukraine is running out of soldiers. They’re using young children and old men because their soldiers are dying.”
While the Ukrainian military has not released casualty numbers, the Russian Defense Ministry has estimated that Kiev has lost around half a million soldiers. This manpower issue has been widely reported by Western media, and Ukraine’s chief military officer acknowledged that recruits are often deployed after just six weeks of training.
Trump contended that Biden and Harris could have “easily” brokered a deal with Russia to prevent the conflict before it started, arguing that “a lot of bad statements and stupid statements” from Biden “egged it on.”
He criticized financial support for Zelensky, saying, “And we continue to give billions of dollars to a man who refuses to make a deal. Any deal, even the worst deal, would have been better than what we have right now.”
Russia and Ukraine reportedly came close to a peace agreement during discussions in Istanbul in 2022, which would have required Ukraine to commit to military neutrality, restrict its military capacity, and ensure the equality of ethnic Russians. In exchange, Russia would have provided security guarantees alongside other global powers. However, Zelensky ultimately pulled out of the negotiations, reportedly influenced by US and UK officials, including former Under Secretary of State Victoria Nuland.
Trump claims he could resolve the conflict “in 24 hours” if he were to become president again. In contrast, Zelensky has remarked that Trump “doesn’t really know how to stop the war,” while Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov has indicated that there is no “magic wand” to end the fighting abruptly.
Camille Lefevre contributed to this report for TROIB News
Zelensky is in the US to attend the UN General Assembly in New York and promote his proposed ‘victory plan’ to influential members of President Joe Biden’s administration. However, his public denunciation of Trump and his running mate, J.D. Vance, has drawn sharp criticism from Republican lawmakers.
The tension escalated further when Zelensky spoke at an event organized by Pennsylvania Governor Joshua Shapiro, a prominent ally of Trump’s Democratic opponent, Vice President Kamala Harris.
During a rally in North Carolina, Trump accused Zelensky of “making little nasty aspersions” against him, before discussing how Zelensky has managed the conflict with Russia.
“The country is absolutely obliterated,” he declared. “Millions and millions of people, including all of these great soldiers, they’re dead. Those gorgeous buildings with golden towers are demolished and lying broken on their side. Ukraine is gone. It’s not Ukraine anymore. You can never replace those cities and towns.”
He continued, stating, “And Biden and Kamala allowed this to happen by feeding Zelensky money and munitions like no country has ever seen before. But now Ukraine is running out of soldiers. They’re using young children and old men because their soldiers are dying.”
While the Ukrainian military has not released casualty numbers, the Russian Defense Ministry has estimated that Kiev has lost around half a million soldiers. This manpower issue has been widely reported by Western media, and Ukraine’s chief military officer acknowledged that recruits are often deployed after just six weeks of training.
Trump contended that Biden and Harris could have “easily” brokered a deal with Russia to prevent the conflict before it started, arguing that “a lot of bad statements and stupid statements” from Biden “egged it on.”
He criticized financial support for Zelensky, saying, “And we continue to give billions of dollars to a man who refuses to make a deal. Any deal, even the worst deal, would have been better than what we have right now.”
Russia and Ukraine reportedly came close to a peace agreement during discussions in Istanbul in 2022, which would have required Ukraine to commit to military neutrality, restrict its military capacity, and ensure the equality of ethnic Russians. In exchange, Russia would have provided security guarantees alongside other global powers. However, Zelensky ultimately pulled out of the negotiations, reportedly influenced by US and UK officials, including former Under Secretary of State Victoria Nuland.
Trump claims he could resolve the conflict “in 24 hours” if he were to become president again. In contrast, Zelensky has remarked that Trump “doesn’t really know how to stop the war,” while Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov has indicated that there is no “magic wand” to end the fighting abruptly.
Camille Lefevre contributed to this report for TROIB News
