Just when it seemed like things couldn’t get any worse for Ukraine, Donald Trump opened his mouth.
After cutting Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky out of the first U.S.-Russia talks on ending the war, Trump took things a step further on Tuesday—flat-out blaming Ukraine for the conflict that has devastated the country and killed thousands.
In his most openly hostile remarks toward Zelensky yet, Trump parroted another one of Vladimir Putin’s talking points, calling for elections in Ukraine—conveniently setting the stage to push Zelensky aside.
The move sent shockwaves through Europe, which, just like Ukraine, was left out of the U.S.-Russia discussions in Saudi Arabia. The fear? That Trump is gearing up to hand Ukraine’s fate to his pal in the Kremlin.
His own Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, had just assured the world that any eventual peace deal would be fair to all sides. Trump’s remarks threw that out the window. It’s now clearer than ever that Washington has flipped its stance—turning its back on Ukraine and bending the knee to Russia.
“We have a situation where we haven’t had elections in Ukraine, where we have martial law,” Trump ranted from Mar-a-Lago, throwing in the bogus claim that Zelensky’s approval rating was at “4%” and that Ukraine had been “blown to smithereens.”
Let’s be real—getting an accurate poll in a war zone isn’t exactly easy. Sure, Zelensky’s approval has dropped since the war began, but nowhere near the dumpster fire Trump describes.
And then came the kicker:
“You know, they want a seat at the table, wouldn’t the people of Ukraine have to have a say, like it’s been a lot of times since we’ve had an election?”
It’s a rich statement coming from the guy who still can’t accept the results of his own election loss. Even more ironic? Putin’s held onto power for over two decades through sham elections and brutal crackdowns, but Trump has nothing to say about that.
TRUMP TWISTS THE NARRATIVE ON UKRAINE
Trump’s latest attempt to rewrite history is straight from his playbook—muddy the waters, gaslight the public, and create just enough confusion to push his own agenda. Sound familiar? Yeah, it’s the same strategy he used to try and flip the 2020 election.
From Mar-a-Lago, he tried to twist the facts on Russia’s 2022 invasion—ignoring the reality that Putin sent his forces storming into an independent democracy, redrawing Europe’s map by force.
“Today I heard, ‘Oh well, we weren’t invited,’” Trump mocked, dismissing Ukraine’s exclusion from the Saudi talks. “Well, you been there for three years. You should’ve ended it after three years. You should’ve never started it. You could’ve made a deal.”
Translation? Trump is suggesting Ukraine should’ve just caved—either let Putin install a puppet government or roll over and hand him the win.
And just when you thought his Putin worship couldn’t get any more blatant, Trump dropped another bombshell—saying he’d be open to European troops enforcing a future Ukraine peace deal. That’s despite the fact that Moscow’s envoys already shot down the idea in Saudi Arabia.
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer pointed out that such a force would only work with U.S. backing, but Trump’s Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth already made it clear—no American troops will be involved.
EVEN REPUBLICANS AREN’T BUYING IT
Not everyone in Trump’s orbit is buying his Putin-friendly pivot.
Senate Armed Services Chairman Roger Wicker didn’t mince words:
“Putin is a war criminal and should be in jail for the rest of his life, if not executed,” Wicker told CNN.
Louisiana Senator John Kennedy backed him up, calling Putin out as a bloodthirsty dictator. But when asked about Trump’s handling of the peace talks? Silence. The Republican Party’s devotion to Trump still runs deep, even as he cozies up to one of the world’s most ruthless autocrats.
And that’s the real takeaway here—Trump isn’t just changing course on Ukraine. He’s rewriting the entire playbook, shifting America from supporting the victim of a brutal invasion to backing the guy who ordered it.
If there was ever any doubt about whose side he’s on, he just made it crystal clear.
