Trump’s terrible words about Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy have caused a lot of people to react in recent days. On Tuesday, Zelenskyy accused Trump of “living in this disinformation space”, and Trump responded by calling Zelenskyy a “dictator without elections” . ,
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This fight isn’t new, of training. During the 2024 election cycle, Zellensky criticized Trump and Vice President JD Vance, who he attributed largely to because they believed a Democrat victory was good.  ,
Oops.
The Biden-Harris management carefully placed Zelenskyy in Pennsylvania, a crucial swing state, to make a profit on the day of the vote. That, he toured a weapons plant, sending a distinct information: billions in aid to Ukraine means work for Settlers.
Some saw it as overt election meddling, as Zelenskyy was successfully campaigning with the former administration. In an interview with The New Yorker, Zelenskyy attacked Trump as confused on Ukraine and went yet more, calling JD Vance “dangerous” and” to radical”. This was a blatant election-year ploy, according to the schedule and messaging.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio then weighed in on Trump’s most recent remarks about Zelenskyy, arguing that the president has legitimate issues with the Russian president, issues that even Joe Biden had.
Rubio told investigative journalist Catherine Herridge,” I think President Trump is really annoyed at President Zelenskyy, and in some cases, very annoyed.” He made it clear that Biden had reacted to the Ukranian president by complaining that” there are newspapers about how he cursed at him in a mobile call” over Ukraine’s frequent needs for more help. Alternatively of expressing thanks, Zelenskyy usually pivots to pressing for more help, Rubio said.
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Rubio also revealed details of a personal conversation that Vance and Vance had with Zelenskyy about a potential joint venture involving Ukraine’s material right. We told them,” Look, we want to get a joint venture with you, not because we’re trying to steal from your state,” he said. The concept, he explained, was that by cooperating in an important financial effort, the U. S. may have a vested interest in Ukraine’s security. Additionally, he noted that a deal like this would help pay for some of the$ 20 billion in aid that was provided by the government to Kyiv. According to Rubio, Zelensky was receptive to the plan, saying he needed to run it through his country’s legislative process.
However, just days later, Zelensky publicly contradicted the private discussion. ” I read two days later that Zelensky is out there saying,’ I rejected the deal, I told them no way, that we’re not doing that,'” Rubio said. ” Well, that’s not what happened in that meeting”.
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Rubio said that moments like this fuel Trump’s skepticism toward Ukraine, emphasizing that Trump’s concern is not about disregarding the country’s plight but about ensuring America’s interests are prioritized. “Ukraine is on another continent, not the president made it clear in his messaging,” the president said. It doesn’t directly impact the daily lives of Americans”, he explained. There is a certain degree of gratitude about this because we care about it because it has an impact on our allies and ultimately for the world.
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Trump, Rubio said, is simply unwilling to tolerate being misled or manipulated.
” President Trump is not the kind of person who is going to sit there and take that,” he said. ” He’s very transparent. He’s going to express to you how he feels, and he has indicated to you that he won’t play any games here.
Despite the tensions, Rubio remained firm that Trump would work for peace in Ukraine and that Zelenskyy would prefer to cooperate rather than engage in” counter-messaging to sort of hustle us.”
Rubio warned that a similar strategy “would not be productive here.”
What’s clear is that Trump is sending an unmistakable message: he won’t tolerate being manipulated by Zelenskyy during delicate peace negotiations. Zelenskyy’s sense of entitlement to U. S. aid is no longer realistic, we have a new administration that is prioritizing fiscal responsibility, not signing blank checks. In short, the priority is ending the war, not funding it.
You can watch Rubio’s entire interview here:
EXCLUSIVE: Our full, unedited interview with Secretary of State Marco Rubio ( @SecRubio ) on his first 30 days leading the Department.
Restarting U. S. /Russia relations following the Biden Administration, direct engagement with Ukraine, U. S. proposal for Gaza, preventing Iranian… pic. twitter.com/cxkHmNZWw0
— Catherine Herridge (@C__ Herridge ) February 21, 2025
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