In a dramatic historic reversal in American diplomacy, President Donald Trump attacked Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, calling him “a mediocre comedian” and claiming that the war in Ukraine could have been avoided with a deal. He also expressed disappointment at Kiev’s reaction to negotiations between Washington and Moscow. “I’m very disappointed. I hear they’re angry—the Ukrainians—that they weren’t invited to the talks,” Trump said from his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida. He believed even a “half-baked negotiator” could have secured an agreement years ago “without losing too much territory.” Then, addressing Zelensky directly, he added: “You’ve been there for three years… You should never have started the war. You could have reached an agreement.” Zelenskiy did not actually start any war; on the contrary, his country, Ukraine, was invaded twice, first in 2014 and then, on a large scale, on February 24, 2022, by Russia, which still occupies 20% of its territory and bombs the rest of Ukrainian territory every day.
