At a news conference Tuesday, President Donald Trump blamed Kyiv for the Russia-Ukraine war.
Speaking on his peace talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin, Trump told reporters that Ukraine did not need a seat at the negotiating table because it “should’ve ended [the war] in three years. You should have never started it. You could have made a deal.”
The Context
February 24 will mark three years since Russia invaded Ukraine and launched the war that has become Europe’s deadliest since World War II, with staggering losses of life, tanks and equipment on both sides.
What To Know
Trump has been speaking directly with Putin in an attempt to bring a swift end to the war in Ukraine. On Tuesday, top diplomats from Russia and the U.S., including Secretary of State Marco Rubio, met to discuss the next steps to ending the war. Rubio after the meeting said that they had agreed to restore embassy staffing, establish a top-notch team to negotiate peace in Ukraine and enhance economic cooperation. No Ukrainian officials were involved in the discussions.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has raised concerns about being left out of the peace talks.
“Decisions on how to end the war in Ukraine cannot be made without Ukraine, nor can any conditions be imposed,” Zelensky said during a visit to Turkey on Tuesday. “We were not invited to this Russian-American meeting in Saudi Arabia. It was a surprise for us, I think for many others as well.”
European and NATO leaders have also urged Trump not to leave Europe out in the cold during negotiations.
But on Tuesday, Trump dismissed the concerns, saying that he believes he alone can end the Russia-Ukraine war.
“I think I have the power to end this war. And I think it’s going very well,” Trump told reporters at Mar-a-Lago after the meeting between U.S. and Russian officials.
“But today I heard, ‘Oh, well we weren’t invited.’ Well, you’ve been there for three years. You should’ve ended it,” he added.
“I could have made a deal for Ukraine that would have given them almost all of the land, and no people would have been killed, and no city would have been demolished and not one dome would have been knocked down. But they chose not to do it that way.”
Before criticizing Zelensky, Trump attacked Joe Biden‘s handling of the war, saying the former president “allowed a war to go on that should have never even happened, even without the United States.”
Trump has said repeatedly he wants to bring an end to the Russia-Ukraine war, but several of his and his administration’s comments have alarmed leaders and lawmakers.
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth last week ruled out Ukraine returning to its pre-2014 borders or gaining NATO membership—both big victories for Russia.
What People Are Saying
U.S. State Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce said Tuesday: “President Trump wants to stop the killing; the United States wants peace and is using its strength in the world to bring countries together. President Trump is the only leader in the world who can get Ukraine and Russia to agree to that.”
Trump told reporters last week, when asked if Ukraine should be an equal member of the peace negotiations: “I think they have to make peace. Their people are being killed, and I think they have to make peace. I said that was not a good war to go into, and I think they have to make peace. That’s what I think.”
Retired Lieutenant General Keith Kellogg, special envoy for Ukraine and Russia, said Saturday, when asked if European countries would have a seat at the negotiating table: “I think that’s not going to happen … There was a lot of people at the table that really had no ability to execute some kind of peace process and failed miserably. We’re not going to go down that path.”
Ukrainian lawmaker Oleksiy Goncharenko told Newsweek: “Europe should be at the table. It’s about European security. The United States did a lot in support of us, we’re very thankful—but Europe also did a lot, and they deserve this place.”
Zelensky said on X, formerly Twitter: “Europe and the world must be better protected from such evil and prepared to confront it. This requires a strong, united foreign policy and pressure on Putin, who started this war and is now expanding it globally. Together with Europe, the U.S., and all our partners, we can end this war with a just and lasting peace.”
What Happens Next
Zelensky is set to visit Saudi Arabia on March 10, where discussions are expected to focus on Ukraine’s diplomatic stance and the Persian Gulf nation’s role in broader international efforts.
The post Trump Says Ukraine ‘Should Have Never Started War With Russia’ appeared first on Newsweek.
