Kyiv, Feb 19 (EFE).- Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Wednesday dismissed recent remarks by US President Donald Trump as “disinformation” from Russia, sparking a war of words between the two.
Trump responded by calling Zelenskyy a “dictator without elections” and accusing him of pushing the US into a war that could never be won.
At a press conference in Kyiv, Zelenskyy addressed Trump’s Tuesday comments, in which he urged Ukraine to hold elections and claimed, without citing a source, that the Ukrainian president’s approval rating stood at a mere 4 percent.
“Regarding this 4 percent, we see it as misinformation. We have evidence that these numbers originate from Russia,” Zelenskyy said.
He cited a survey released Wednesday by the International Institute of Sociology in Kyiv, which found that 57 percent of Ukrainians trust Zelenskyy, up from 52 percent in December.
Fifty Percent of the Resources
Zelensky also confirmed, for the first time, that a recent economic proposal from the White House suggested Ukraine cede 50 percent of its natural resources to the US in exchange for continued , an issue previously reported by media citing Ukrainian sources.
He clarified that the deal included no guarantee of continued US backing and stressed that Kyiv had not signed it.
Zelenskyy also refuted Trump’s claim that the US must recover $500 billion from Ukrainian minerals to balance its aid contributions. According to him, Ukraine has received approximately $67 billion in military aid and $31.5 billion in financial assistance from Washington.
US-Russia Talks and Ukraine’s Response
The Ukrainian president also commented on a high-level meeting Tuesday in Saudi Arabia between US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, their first public talks since Russia’s full-scale invasion nearly three years ago.
“They have the right to discuss bilateral matters, but I believe the US just helped Putin break years of isolation,” Zelenskyy said, adding that Ukraine is “prepared for anything” amid Trump’s renewed engagement with Moscow.
He also revealed that Kyiv has begun talks with European leaders about boosting military funding should US wane.
Trump Fires Back
Hours later, Trump lashed out on Truth Social, branding Zelenskyy a “dictator” for not holding elections after his term ended in May 2023, despite Ukrainian law barring elections under martial law, which has been in place since the Russian invasion.
“A dictator without elections, Zelenskyy better move fast or he is not going to have a country left,” Trump wrote, accusing the Ukrainian leader of refusing to hold elections and being “very low in Ukrainian polls.”
“The only thing he was good at was playing Biden ‘like a fiddle’.”
As he has before, Trump claimed the previous Democratic istration spent $350 billion on Ukraine and called Zelensky a “moderately successful comic” who manipulated President Joe Biden for financial aid with little ability.
“Think of it, a modestly successful comedian, Zelenskyy, talked the United States of America into spending $350 billion to go into a war that couldn’t be won, that never had to start, but a war that he, without the US and ‘Trump,’ will never be able to settle.”
A Visit Overshadowed
Meanwhile, Trump’s special representative for the Russia-Ukraine war, Keith Kellogg, arrived in Ukraine on his first official visit, a visit largely overshadowed by Trump’s remarks.
“We understand the need for security guarantees,” said Kellogg, a retired general and Vietnam War veteran. He said his mission was to listen and understand the Ukrainian concerns.
He met with Andriy Yermak, head of the Ukrainian presidential office.
Zelenskyy said he plans to take Kellogg to the front lines so he can witness the situation firsthand. EFE
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