Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said he was worried about the possibility of Donald Trump returning to the White House and called Trump’s claim that he could stop Ukraine’s war with Russia in 24 hours “very dangerous”.
In an interview with Britain’s “Channel 4 News” broadcast on Friday, Zelensky invited the former US president and candidate for the Republican presidential nomination to visit Kuiv, but only if Trump fulfills his promise.
“Donald Trump, I invite you to Ukraine, to Kyiv. If you can stop the war in 24 hours, I think that will be enough for you to come,” said Zelensky.
The Ukrainian leader also expressed concern that the US would take unilateral action that would not take Ukraine’s perspective into account, noting the lack of detail surrounding Trump’s “peace plan”.
Zelensky described the former president’s rhetoric as “very dangerous” and seemed concerned that Trump’s idea of a negotiated solution could involve Ukraine making major concessions to Russia.
“(Trump) will make decisions on his own, and… even if I’m not talking about Russia, but without both sides, without us,” Zelensky said. “If he says that publicly, it’s a little scary. I’ve seen many, many victims, but this is really stressing me out a little bit.”
He added: “Because even if his idea (to end the war) – which no one has heard yet, does not work for us, for our people, he will do everything to implement his idea anyway. And that worries me a little.”
Trump has repeatedly insisted he is in a good position to negotiate an end to the war that has raged for nearly two years, saying he has good relations with both the Russian and Ukrainian leaders. During his political career, he often praised Russian President Vladimir Putin, even after Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
At a party rally in Georgia, US, just days after Russian tanks entered Ukraine, Trump described Putin as a “smart” political player and expressed admiration for Russia’s quick takeover of a huge, “big chunk of land” – Ukraine at the cost of relatively small sanctions – as he believed at the time.
The US House of Representatives unsuccessfully impeached Trump while he was president, alleging that he pressured Zelensky to continue a politically motivated investigation that could harm Joe Biden’s chances of winning the 2020 presidential election. He also withheld $400 million in military funding aid granted by Congress to Ukraine and supported Russian separatists in the east of that country.
