Zelenskyy, Trump verbally spar after U.S.-Russia meeting

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Wednesday said that U.S. President Donald Trump was peddling Russian disinformation, the Kyiv Independent reported. Trump claimed on Tuesday that Zelenskyy had an approval rating of 4% and accused Ukraine of failing to make peace with Russia. Trump also claimed that Ukraine was living under martial law and that it hadn’t held democratic elections in years.

The leaders’ spat comes amid talks between U.S. and Russian diplomats about a path to peace in Ukraine. NATO and EU officials have joined Zelenskyy in demanding to be included in peace talks.

Are Trump’s statements false? Ukraine has not held democratic elections since the war started. Martial law went into effect in February 2022 when Russia invaded Ukraine. The Ukrainian constitution prevents democratic elections from taking place while the country is under martial law, according to the Kyiv Independent. Zelenskyy’s approval rating is 57%, the Independent reported on Tuesday, contradicting Trump.

What did Trump have to say about peace talks? Trump criticized Zelenskyy for demanding a place at the table during talks between Russia and the United States on Tuesday in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Kyiv had three years to negotiate a peaceful end to the war in Ukraine but had never taken the steps to do so, Trump said.

Dig deeper: Read my report in The Sift about Zelenskyy’s talks with U.S. Vice President J.D. Vance in Munich last week and Ukraine’s requirements for proceeding with a peace deal.