Donald Trump has defended waivers on sanctions against Russia, saying he wants to keep Moscow engaged in negotiations, while accusing Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy of not wanting to bring the war to an end.
The US president made the remarks on Truth Social after criticism of his decision to block numerous sanctions on Russia shortly before they were due to take effect.
“My decision on Russia is a very simple one. I am in the process of negotiating Peace in the war between Russia and Ukraine, and don’t want to do anything that will drive, foolishly, Russia away from the bargaining table,” Mr Trump wrote.
The decision has fuelled a diplomatic dispute between Washington and Kyiv. Mr Zelenskyy told NBC’s Meet the Press that waiving sanctions would strengthen Russian President Vladimir Putin’s war effort and “will hurt Ukraine”.
“We can’t compare me and Putin. He’s [an] aggressor. He occupied us. He killed adults and children, his soldiers. He’s a terrorist, and that’s why I hope that President Trump will be very clear with this position,” Mr Zelenskyy said.
Mr Trump repeated his claim that the Ukrainian leader did not want the war to end, alleging that Kyiv was attacking diesel refineries in Russia despite knowing the strikes were “seriously hurting the world diesel markets”.
“Zelenskyy doesn’t care, and frankly, with all of the money that Europe is famously giving him… he doesn’t want to end this war, and probably never did,” Mr Trump wrote.
Mr Trump announced on October 9 that Russia would supply more than 300,000 metric tonnes of diesel to US and global markets, as fuel prices rose after the US and Israel launched war on Iran in late February. Tehran subsequently effectively closed the Strait of Hormuz, through which one-fifth of global energy exports had transited before the conflict.
The decision to embrace Russian energy has angered Kyiv, European partners and many US officials, who argue that it rewards Moscow while its war against Ukraine continues.
US-Ukraine talks continue
Mr Zelenskyy said on X that he had spoken to US presidential envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner as part of “virtually non-stop communication” between the two countries’ teams about the next steps in diplomacy.
“We are doing everything on our part to make this happen, and to ensure that America’s position is strong and helps bring peace closer. Peace that everyone, except Russia, has been waiting for over the past four and a half years,” he wrote.
The discussions took place as Russia and Ukraine continued attacks on each other’s energy infrastructure. Moscow left thousands without power, while Kyiv carried out its largest drone attack on Russia, in St Petersburg, since the war began.
