Zelensky “No Angel,” says Trump

In a controversial and widely criticized interview aired Thursday, President Donald Trump suggested that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky bore responsibility for the nearly three-year-long war between Russia and Ukraine.

Trump’s comments, made during a pre-taped interview with Fox News host Sean Hannity, sparked immediate backlash, with critics accusing him of misrepresenting the events leading up to Russia’s invasion.

Trump claimed that Zelensky should have preemptively capitulated to avoid conflict, saying, “First of all, he’s fighting a much bigger entity, okay, much bigger, much more powerful. He shouldn’t have done that, because we could have made a deal, and it would have been a deal that would have been, it would have been a nothing deal.”

The war, which began in February 2022 when Russian President Vladimir Putin launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine, has devastated the region.

Despite Trump’s assertions, it was Putin who ordered the invasion, violating international agreements, including the 1994 Budapest Memorandum, which guaranteed Ukraine’s security in exchange for relinquishing its nuclear arsenal.

In the interview, Trump described Zelensky as “no angel” and claimed the Ukrainian leader decided to “fight” rather than negotiate, despite Russia initiating hostilities. “I could have made that deal so easily,” Trump said. “And Zelensky decided: ‘I want to fight.’”

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Trump’s remarks ignore the historical context of Russian aggression against Ukraine, including the annexation of Crimea in 2014 and continued occupation of parts of eastern Ukraine by Russian-backed separatists.

The war escalated dramatically in 2022 when Putin announced a so-called “special military operation,” claiming it aimed to “demilitarize and denazify” Ukraine—a justification widely dismissed as baseless by the international community.

Throughout the conflict, Trump has portrayed himself as uniquely capable of brokering peace, often touting his relationship with Putin. In a Truth Social post on Wednesday, Trump reiterated his stance, stating, “I’m going to do Russia, whose economy is failing, and President Putin, a very big FAVOR. Settle now, and STOP this ridiculous War! IT’S ONLY GOING TO GET WORSE.”

He also threatened to impose “high levels of Taxes, Tariffs, and Sanctions” on Russian exports if a deal is not reached soon. Trump has frequently claimed that the war “never would have started” had he remained president, though critics argue that his foreign policy often emboldened authoritarian leaders like Putin.

Trump’s assertions that Zelensky initiated the conflict and could have avoided war by capitulating have been met with widespread condemnation.

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Experts and international organizations, including the United Nations and the International Court of Justice, have unequivocally blamed Russia for the invasion. Zelensky, who has rallied international support for Ukraine’s defense, has been praised for his leadership in the face of Russian aggression.

To date, the U.S. has provided over $65 billion in military aid to Ukraine. President Joe Biden has emphasized America’s commitment to supporting Ukraine’s sovereignty, framing the conflict as a critical front in the global fight against authoritarianism.

Trump’s calls for a negotiated settlement have drawn skepticism, given his past comments expressing admiration for Putin and his downplaying of Russian interference in the 2016 U.S. presidential election. Critics argue that Trump’s rhetoric undermines Ukraine’s right to self-defense and emboldens Putin’s aggression.