President seemed to criticize Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy by repeating his call for elections, despite Ukraine’s wartime ban on such votes.
These comments come as the U.S. government works to secure an agreement to end the Russia-Ukraine war.
“They haven’t held an election in quite some time,” . “You know, they claim to be a democracy, but there comes a point where it’s no longer a democracy anymore.”
This isn’t the first time Trump has urged Ukraine to . In February, Trump sparked controversy when he labeled Zelenskyy a “dictator without elections” in a Truth Social post.
“He refuses to hold elections, his approval ratings in Ukraine are very low, and the only thing he was good at was playing Biden ‘like a fiddle.’ A dictator without elections—Zelenskyy better act fast or he won’t have a country left,” .
A few days after the post, Zelenskyy visited the where he had a well-known clash with Trump and Vice President JD Vance. The three men sparred over the war as Zelenskyy attempted to frame it as a possible threat to the U.S., a point Trump and Vance rejected.
On Tuesday, Zelenskyy said that after speaking with European leaders, he was ready to present a peace proposal to the U.S.
“We are working very actively on all components of potential steps toward ending the war. The Ukrainian and European components are now more developed, and we are ready to present them to our partners in the U.S. Together with the American side, we expect to swiftly make the potential steps as doable as possible,” . “We are committed to a real peace and remain in constant contact with the United States.”
Zelenskyy said the end of the war depended on Russia’s willingness to “take effective steps to stop the bloodshed.”
The peace deal is not the only issue on Zelenskyy’s plate. He’s also facing domestic turbulence after a recent . Andriy Yermak, head of the office of the president of Ukraine, resigned late last month after his home was raided by anti-corruption investigators. Upon Yermak’s resignation, Zelenskyy thanked him for “always presenting the Ukrainian position in the negotiation track exactly as it should be.”
Digital reached out to Zelenskyy’s office and the White House for comment.
Digital’s Alex Nitzberg and ‘ Simon Owen contributed to this report.