Donald Trump called Volodymyr Zelenskyy “courageous.” The US president’s warm words are a notable change in tone toward Ukraine’s leader. The remarks came as he was commending Zelenskyy’s performance in the grinding war against Russia.
Volodymyr Zelenskyy earns rare praise from Donald Trump
Speaking to reporters at the White House, Donald Trump praised Volodymyr Zelenskyy. The US president said that Zelenskyy was “doing pretty well, no matter how you look at it.” He added, “He’s holding his own at least. A lot of people dying on both sides, but I think he’s doing pretty well.” Trump went further, telling journalists, “You have to say he’s courageous, he’s got great equipment, he’s got great men, he’s got fighters.”
The tone is a change from earlier in the war. Previously, Trump told Zelenskyy he did not have the “cards” to win. He repeatedly suggested Ukraine would need to give up territory to reach a peace deal.
Trump and Zelenskyy most recently met at the G7 summit in France, where leaders reached a consensus to increase pressure on Russia to end over four years of war. Trump left that meeting with renewed interest in reimposing sanctions on Russian oil.
Meanwhile, Ukraine is pressing forward militarily. Kyiv has been targeting energy infrastructure and transport links connecting Russia to the occupied Crimean Peninsula. Ukraine’s defence minister, Mykhailo Fedorov, said Crimea would soon “turn into an island,” warning that cut-off logistics could bring “very unexpected consequences for the Russians” (via Euro News).
The Security Service of Ukraine announced strikes on air defence systems and military airfields in Crimea, including four aircraft hangars at the Saky airfield and components of S-400 and Pantsir-S1 missile systems near Kerch.
NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, who also met with the leaders of E5 nations — France, Germany, Italy, Poland, and the United Kingdom — said Ukraine was “doing so much better over the last five, six months than before,” crediting continued American assistance for the improvement (via ANI).
With the NATO summit in Ankara approaching in July, allied support for Ukraine and how long it lasts remains a central question for the war’s outcome.
Originally reported by Devanshi Basu on Mandatory.
