U.S. President Donald Trump has recently expressed criticism toward Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, suggesting that Zelenskyy bears some responsibility for Russia’s ongoing invasion of Ukraine. During a public statement, Trump conveyed his disappointment over Zelenskyy’s remarks regarding his exclusion from U.S.-Russia diplomatic discussions held in Saudi Arabia, which aimed to facilitate a resolution to the conflict.
“Today I heard, oh, well, we weren’t invited. Well, you’ve been there for three years,” Trump stated, referencing Ukraine’s involvement in the geopolitical landscape. “You should have never started it. You could have made a deal.” His comments imply a belief that diplomatic negotiations should have been pursued more aggressively by Ukraine prior to the escalation of hostilities.
While Trump did not elaborate on his perspective, he has frequently attributed the war’s onset to Ukraine’s aspirations to join NATO, suggesting that this ambition provoked aggressive actions from Russia. However, numerous experts and analysts argue that the root cause of the conflict lies in Russian President Vladimir Putin’s longstanding imperialistic ambitions rather than Ukraine’s NATO aspirations, which were met with a lack of substantial support from Western nations at that time. This complex interplay of historical grievances, security concerns, and geopolitical strategies continues to fuel the ongoing crisis in the region.
