Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy issued a stark warning after Donald Trump moved to waive new sanctions targeting Russia. Zelenskyy said the United States formally siding with Vladimir Putin would amount to a “historic mistake” as tensions between Washington and Kyiv continue to grow.
Trump’s decision came shortly after the U.S. reached a separate deal involving Russian diesel, prompting concerns in Ukraine that easing economic pressure could strengthen Moscow.
The Ukrainian leader says an official US move toward Putin would be a historic mistake
According to HuffPost, Zelenskyy addressed Trump’s latest Russia policy during an appearance on NBC’s Meet the Press.
The Ukrainian president said he still wanted to view Trump as an ally despite disagreeing with his recent decisions. “We want to trust him,” Zelenskyy said, adding that he hoped the U.S. president would reconsider his approach.
His strongest warning concerned the possibility of Washington openly supporting Putin. Zelenskyy called such a shift a “historic mistake and big tragedy.” He also said Ukraine would struggle to withstand Russia if the United States officially moved to Moscow’s side.
Trump recently used an executive order to waive sanctions against Russia that Congress had approved. The president said the move served U.S. national interests. The sanctions were designed to increase economic pressure on Moscow by targeting buyers of Russian oil and gas.
The decision followed a U.S.-Russia agreement involving Russian diesel supplies. Zelenskyy argued that the arrangement could strengthen Putin and reduce pressure on Russia to end its invasion of Ukraine. He maintained that easing restrictions on Moscow would not help bring the war closer to an end.
Despite his criticism, Zelenskyy stopped short of abandoning hopes of cooperation with Washington. He said Ukraine wanted Trump to remain on its side, or at minimum maintain a neutral position between Kyiv and Moscow.
His comments highlighted the growing strain between the two governments as Trump pursues a different approach toward Russia and negotiations over the war.
