Zelenskiy says Trump trapped in disinformation bubble

KYIV – Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky hit back on Feb 18 at Mr Donald Trump’s suggestion that Ukraine was responsible for Russia’s 2022 full-scale invasion, saying the US President was trapped in a Russian disinformation bubble.

Speaking ahead of talks with Mr Trump’s Ukraine envoy a day after the US President said Ukraine “should never have started” the conflict, Mr Zelensky said he would like Mr Trump’s team to have “more truth” about Ukraine.

The Ukrainian leader said Mr Trump’s assertion that his approval rating was just 4 per cent was Russian disinformation, and that any attempt to replace him would fail.

“We have evidence that these figures are being discussed between America and Russia. That is, President Trump… unfortunately lives in this disinformation space,” Mr Zelensky told Ukrainian TV.

Less than a month into his presidency, Mr Trump has upended US policy on Ukraine and Russia, ending Washington’s bid to isolate Russia over its invasion of Ukraine with a Trump-Putin phone call, and talks between senior US and Russian officials.

Mr Trump said he may meet Mr Putin in February.

The Kremlin said such a meeting could take longer to prepare, but Russia’s sovereign wealth fund said it expected a number of US companies to return to Russia as early as the second quarter.

The talks, on ending the war in Ukraine, have excluded both Ukraine and Europe, which Mr Trump says must step up to guarantee any ceasefire.

Mr Zelensky has suggested giving US companies the right to extract valuable minerals in Ukraine in return for US security guarantees but indicated Mr Trump is not offering that.

Not selling his country

Mr Zelensky said at a news conference the US gave Ukraine US$67 billion (S$90 billion) in weapons and US$31.5 billion in budget support, and that American demands