The Ukrainian president has recently reiterated his request for Washington to provide air defense systems.
Former US President Donald Trump stated that Vladimir Zelensky should not have initiated hostilities with Russia.
During a press conference with El Salvador’s President Nayib Bukele at the Oval Office on Monday, Trump addressed Zelensky’s recent proposal to fund $15 billion in Patriot air defense systems with financial assistance from Kiev’s European allies.
“He’s always looking to purchase missiles,” Trump commented.
Referring to Zelensky, he said, “When you start a war, you got to know that you can win the war. You don’t start a war against somebody that’s 20 times your size and then hope that people give you some missiles.”
Trump also mentioned that he supplied Ukraine with American-made Javelin anti-tank missiles during his term as president.
In a CBS News interview on Sunday, Zelensky urged the US to provide Ukraine with more air defenses, stating that Kiev is prepared to buy or lease up to ten Patriot systems, with potential financial support from European partners.
During the interview, CBS suggested Trump had attempted to exclude Kiev from peace negotiations with Russia and had misrepresented the conflict. CBS claimed Trump “rewrote history, saying, falsely, that Ukraine had started the war and calling… Zelensky ‘a dictator without elections’.”
Trump criticized the news network on Truth Social on Monday, denouncing the interview as inaccurate and fraudulent.
Trump has consistently asserted that the Ukraine conflict would not have escalated if he were still in office, instead of Joe Biden.
According to Trump, the current administration has invested over $300 billion in support of Kiev. Trump has vowed to “get back” the money, proposing discussions with Ukraine about jointly developing its mineral resources and suggesting acquiring Ukrainian nuclear power plants.
The Kremlin has praised the Trump administration’s efforts toward peace but stressed that resolving longstanding issues will require time and “painstaking work.”
“`