US President Donald Trump intensified his calls for a resolution to the Russia-Ukraine war, saying Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky will “have to get going and make a deal” and pressing Europe to stop buying Russian oil.
Trump told reporters, “He’s going to have to make a deal; Zelensky is going to have to make a deal, and Europe has to stop buying oil from Russia. Okay? You know, they talk, but they have to stop buying oil from Russia.”
Commenting on the strained relationship between the two leaders, Trump said, “It takes two to tango. Those are two people, Zelensky and Putin, that hate each other, and it looks like I have to sit in the room with them, because they can’t sit in a room together. There’s great hatred there.”
He defended his summit in Alaska with Putin, adding, “That meeting accomplished a lot,” although he did not provide evidence to support this claim.
Trump emphasized that Europe’s continued purchases of Russian oil were a central issue, saying, “I don’t want them purchasing Russian oil, and they’ve got to stop immediately. Not fair to us. They’re purchasing Russian oil, and we have to do things.”
He argued that US economic interests were also at stake: “They are buying everything from US; unlike Biden, who gave away $350bn, we actually make money. But I don’t want to make money. You know what I want? I want that war to stop.”
Responding to a question from a Ukrainian journalist, Trump said he “loves Ukraine” but acknowledged its dire situation: “It should have never happened. It’s a war that should have never happened. The country is in very serious trouble. But I’m going to get it stopped.”
He added, “I’ve stopped seven wars in the last eight months. I thought that would have been the easiest, because I know Putin, but it’s not, because there’s tremendous hatred between Zelensky … and Putin, but we’re going to get it stopped.”