Examining Donald Trump’s Statements on Zelenskyy and the Ukraine Conflict | UK News

European leaders have been taken aback by a collection of contentious statements from Donald Trump regarding the conflict in Ukraine and its president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

The remarks made by the US president, which include allegations that Ukraine initiated the war, have faced substantial pushback, with Mr. Zelenskyy himself asserting that Mr. Trump exists in a “disinformation bubble”.

As Western leaders contemplate their reactions to Mr. Trump’s statements, we examine their veracity.

Trump labels Zelenskyy a ‘dictator’

In a harsh post on his Truth Social platform on Wednesday, Mr. Trump referred to Mr. Zelenskyy as a “dictator without elections”.

He warned that Mr. Zelenskyy “better move fast or he is not going to have a country left”.

Mr. Trump also claimed that the US was “successfully negotiating an end to the War with Russia” and insisted that only his administration is capable of achieving this.

Stay updated: Live updates on the Ukraine war

Fact-check:

Mr. Zelenskyy was elected as Ukraine’s president through a democratic process in May 2019, securing 73% of the votes in the second round.

Under Ukrainian law, presidential elections should occur on the last Sunday of March during the fifth year of the incumbent president’s term.

In line with this law, an election was set for 2024 but was not conducted due to martial law enacted in response to the war.

Ukrainian law forbids presidential or parliamentary elections during a state of martial law, which places military rule above civilian governance.

For comparison, during World War I, both the UK and Canada postponed elections by extending parliament terms.

Mr. Zelenskyy has committed to holding an election once the war concludes.

Zelenskyy’s ‘poor approval rating’

During a speech following a meeting between senior US and Russian officials in Saudi Arabia on Tuesday, Mr. Trump claimed that Mr. Zelenskyy has a mere 4% approval rating among Ukrainian voters.

Speaking from his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida, he asserted: “We have a situation where we haven’t had elections in Ukraine, where we have martial law, essentially martial law in Ukraine, where the leader in Ukraine, I mean, I hate to say it, but he’s down to 4% approval rating.”

Elon Musk, the world’s wealthiest man, whom Mr. Trump appointed to lead the new US Department of Government Efficiency, also implied that Mr. Zelenskyy has a low approval rating.

He expressed on X: “If Zelenskyy was actually loved by the people of Ukraine, he would hold an election. He knows he would lose in a landslide, despite having seized control of ALL Ukrainian media, so he cancelled the election.”

Fact-check:

Mr. Trump did not clarify where he derived his 4% approval rating for Mr. Zelenskyy.

While polling is scarce due to the war, the Kyiv International Institute of Sociology in Ukraine conducted a survey indicating that as of February 2025, Mr. Zelenskyy had a 57% “trust” rating.

This figure decreased from a peak of 90% in May 2022, shortly after Russia’s invasion.

The latest survey involved 1,000 individuals randomly contacted in areas of Ukraine currently under the government’s control, as reported by the institute.

Anton Hrushetskyi, the institute’s executive director, commented: “If some international partners and allies are concerned about the legitimacy of the president in light of potential peace negotiations and deem it necessary to call for elections, from the perspective of Ukrainian citizens, there are no issues with this.”

Ukraine ‘started the war’ with Russia

In his address at Mar-a-Lago on Tuesday, the US president seemed to attribute the blame for the war to Ukraine, asserting that Kyiv had had a “seat (at the table) for three years and a long time before that”.

He said: “You should have never started it. You could have made a deal.”

Fact-check:

Since 2014, Russia has invaded and annexed Ukrainian territory on two occasions.

Just five days before Russia’s troops entered Ukraine in 2022, with Russian forces gathering at the borders, Mr. Zelenskyy remarked: “We are ready to sit down and speak… What’s the point of us shooting and proposing diplomacy at the same time?”

The full-scale invasion of Ukraine by Russia in 2022 traces back to events starting in 2014, known as the Maidan Revolution or the Revolution of Dignity.

Months of protests ensued following the ousting of then-president Viktor Yanukovych, who had favored closer ties with Moscow over Europe.

Russia denounced this as a “coup” and accused Western nations of orchestrating it, vehemently opposing the notion that Ukraine’s pro-Western government might join NATO.

In response to the revolution, pro-Russian separatists occupied government buildings in eastern Ukraine, while Russia deployed its troops and annexed Crimea in March 2014, violating international law.

A subsequent conflict, termed the Donbas War, ensued between Ukrainian forces and pro-Russian separatists in the east.

Despite efforts at negotiation, the conflict persisted until February 2022 when Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

At that juncture, and even today, Russia has maintained that it is conducting a “special military operation” in eastern Ukraine, while simultaneously attacking from the north toward Kyiv before retreating.

In 2022, Russia declared the annexation of four eastern regions of Ukraine, a move widely condemned by the international community.

For further reading:
Ukraine needs ‘reliable’ security guarantees – Zelenskyy
Trump envoy has ‘friendship’ with Putin

Trump claims US has extended more financial aid to Ukraine than Europe

This week, the US president asserted that the United States has provided Ukraine with at least $200 billion (£158 billion) more in financial assistance than European nations since the onset of Russia’s invasion in February 2022.

Mr. Trump stated: “I think Europe has contributed $100 billion (£79 billion)… and we’ve given, let’s say, $300 billion (£237 billion) plus.”

Fact-check:

There are various estimates regarding the financial assistance given to Ukraine by different countries.

The Kiel Institute for the World Economy’s Ukraine Support Tracker indicates that European nations have pledged a total of €132 billion (£109 billion or $139 billion) in aid to Ukraine.

According to the tracker, the US has allocated roughly €114 billion (£95 billion or $120 billion).

Moreover, there are ongoing discussions regarding the accuracy of how much nations report providing to Ukraine versus what has actually reached the country.

As noted by The Washington Post, a fraction of the funds sent by Washington constitutes “drawdowns” from US military stockpiles or payments to US defense contractors for military supplies.

Russia’s desire to halt the conflict

After the meeting in Saudi Arabia on Tuesday, Mr. Trump suggested that Russia is eager to conclude the war.

He remarked: “(The talks) were very fruitful. Russia wants to do something. They want to stop the savage barbarianism.”

Fact-check:

Currently, Russia occupies around one-fifth of Ukrainian territory.

However, information from the US and allied intelligence indicates that President Vladimir Putin still aims to control all of Ukraine, according to four Western intelligence officials and two US congressional sources who spoke to Sky’s US affiliate, NBC News.

“We have no intelligence suggesting that Putin is genuinely interested in a peace agreement at this time,” one congressional source stated.

Mr. Putin has historically described Ukraine as not being an independent nation, claiming that Russians and Ukrainians are “one people” and that modern Ukraine “was created entirely by Bolshevik Russia”.

Nonetheless, outwardly, Russia has shown interest in initiating negotiations to conclude the war, as evidenced by recent meetings between US and Russian representatives in Saudi Arabia this week.