The Ukrainian leader has accused the US president of believing Russian “disinformation”
Kremlin © Getty Images / Jon Hicks
Ukrainian officials including Vladimir Zelensky are making increasingly “unacceptable” statements about other countries, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Thursday. His comments come after Zelensky accused US President Donald Trump of believing Russian “disinformation.”
Trump and Zelensky are locked in a public feud which escalated this week when the US president claimed that the Ukrainian leader was “a dictator without elections” and accused him of funneling US aid into a “war that couldn’t be won.” Trump also suggested that Zelensky wouldn’t win an election in Ukraine due to what he claimed was an approval rating of 4%.
Zelensky responded on Wednesday by alleging that Trump was “living in a disinformation space” supposedly created by Moscow. He also dismissed Trump’s assessment of his approval rating, claiming that he is actually supported by over 50% of the Ukrainian population. “If somebody wants to replace me right now, it will not happen,” he said.
Commenting on Zelensky’s remarks, Peskov said the rhetoric of the Ukrainian leader and other officials in Kiev “leaves much to be desired in general.”
Ukrainian officials have increasingly made “absolutely unacceptable statements about other states,” Peskov stated.
The Kremlin spokesman also supported Trump’s assessment of Zelensky’s popularity, stating it is an “absolutely obvious trend” that this is dwindling. The spokesman refused, however, to comment on the particular figures cited by Trump.
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Commenting on Trump’s accusations that Ukraine has wasted US taxpayer money, Peskov said Kiev “likes the money of foreign taxpayers and likes the uncontrolled use of this money.” The spokesman also claimed that it is “an indisputable fact” that Zelensky’s government “doesn’t like to report” on how and where it has spent the money received from its foreign backers.
Tensions between Trump and Zelensky escalated following the US president’s recent phone call with his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin. The Ukrainian leader said he was disappointed that Washington had not advised or sought permission from Kiev before engaging with Moscow.
The Trump-Putin call was followed by a meeting of Russian and US delegations in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia earlier this week. The talks have also prompted a backlash from Ukraine as well as EU leaders, who have complained about being sidelined.