Quotes
We can do it the easy way, or the hard way — and the easy way is always better,
Trump warned in a message addressed directly to Putin on his social media site Truth Social We have a situation where we haven’t had elections in Ukraine, where we have martial law, essentially martial law in Ukraine, where the leader in Ukraine, I mean, I hate to say it, but he’s down to 4 percent approval rating.”
Their quandary has only been worsened by Trump’s remarks on Tuesday, when he said Trump and Putin want Zelenskyy out — their alignment is worrisome,
a former Ukrainian minister told POLITICO, who asked to remain anonymous in order to speak freely For the Ukrainians, there’s too much uncertainty now,
an American adviser to Kyiv told POLITICO on condition of anonymity In the worst case scenario, Ukraine will keep fighting. If their defenses crumble, I don't think that the American people want to see those pictures on television and to be held responsible,
Russia wants to do something,
Trump told reporters in Palm Beach, Florida Russia has won Round One,
U.S. Representative Jake Auchincloss, a Massachusetts Democrat who is a co-chair of the bipartisan House Ukraine caucus, told Reuters I was briefed (on the talks). I rate them highly, there is a result,
Putin said at a drone factory in Saint Petersburg We are not imposing anything on anyone. We are ready, I have already said this a hundred times – if they want, please, let these negotiations take place. And we will be ready to return to the table for negotiations,
No one is excluding Ukraine,
Putin said in a televised meeting with journalists in Saint Petersburg, Yes, I have been informed. I rate them highly, there are results,
he was quoted as saying by the Interfax news agency on Wednesday Putin’s information about a large-scale Russian offensive is a lie,
This isn’t positive for Ukraine. What it does is that they’re bringing Putin out of isolation, and the Russians are happy because the discussion focuses on them,
Zelenskyy said at a news conference on Wednesday, differing with Trump The Russian-American meeting in Saudi Arabia came as a surprise to us, just as it did to many others. To be honest, I don’t really care. What matters to me is that our partners take time to think about us,
Zelenskyy said on Tuesday during a news conference He is the first, and so far, in my opinion, the only Western leader who has publicly and loudly said that one of the root causes of the Ukrainian situation was the impudent line of the previous administration to draw Ukraine into NATO.”
Praising Trump, Lavrov said on Wednesday We understand the need for security guarantees”.
Trump’s envoy for Ukraine, Keith Kellogg, who arrived in Kyiv on Wednesday, said Unfortunately, President Trump – I have great respect for him as a leader of a nation that we have great respect for, the American people who always support us – unfortunately lives in this disinformation space,
Without increasing the level of trust between Russia and the United States, it is impossible to resolve many issues, including the Ukrainian crisis,
Putin said in his first comments on Tuesday's meeting in Riyadh If Crimea remains in Russian hands, Russia will use it to dominate the Black Sea aggressively and to attack Ukraine again,
No, I will not protect you, in fact I would encourage [the Russians] to do whatever the hell they want. You gotta pay,
