Monday, February 26, 2024 – Former US President, Donald Trump will be “against Americans” if he chooses to support Russia over Ukraine, President Volodymyr Zelensky warned the Republican party presidential front-runner as as Ukraine enters a third year of full-scale war with Russia.
Speaking to CNN’s Kaitlan Collins in Kyiv as the war reaches
a pivotal moment, Zelensky said he “can’t understand how Donald Trump can be on
the side of (Russian President Vladimir) Putin.”
“It’s unbelievable,” he added.
Trump, who is on the verge of becoming the Republican
presidential nominee after winning the South Carolina Republican primary, has
in the past refused to say whether he wants Russia or Ukraine to win the war.
Zelensky said that he believed Trump did not understand
Putin's goals.
Last year Trump said he would end the conflict in one day if
elected.
“I think Donald Trump doesn’t know Putin,” Zelensky said. “I
know he met him… but he never fought with Putin. (The) American army never
fought with the army of Russia. Never… I have a better understanding,” he said.
“I don’t think he understands that Putin will never stop,”
he said.
The interview comes at the end of a weekend in which Ukraine
marked the second anniversary of Russia’s full-scale invasion.
Kyiv suffered a major defeat earlier this month when
Ukrainian troops withdrew from Avdiivka, an eastern city they held for a
decade.
Zelensky and other Ukrainian and Western officials said
Avdiivka was lost because troops did not have enough ammunition to defend it.
Yet despite the horrific consequences of these shortages,
the US Congress continues to stall on President Joe Biden’s $60 billion
military aid package for Ukraine.
Zelensky said that without US aid, Ukraine will not only
struggle to make any new gains on the battlefield, but it will also find it
difficult to keep defending itself this year.
“People will be prepared, but
ammunition will not be prepared and brigades will not be ready… not only for
our counter-offensive, they will not be ready to defend, to stay strong. It
will be very difficult,” he said.
Ukraine’s new army chief Oleksandr Syrskyi is reportedly
drawing up two versions of a plan on what to do next, he said. If Kyiv gets US
assistance, it will be able to start pushing back against Russia. If it
doesn’t, it will have to focus on defending only.
Zelensky said that he had spoken to House Speaker Mike
Johnson about the aid package and was feeling optimistic after that
conversation.
“He said that he will do everything to support Ukraine, and
he’s on our side, and he understands how heroic our people, our soldiers and
civilians (are),” he said.
Zelensky added that while he understands the US is heading
into elections, he is hoping an agreement can be reached.
“If they will change their minds, it’s a big problem for
us,” he said.
“I asked President (Biden)… ‘please, president, I’m asking
you to help me and to help the Ukrainian people… please have one meeting with
each other, Democrats and Republicans, and please, can you have a deal?’” he
said.
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