Donald Trump has launched a scathing attack on US President Joe Biden over the Ukraine conflict, calling it "Sleepy Joe Biden's War" in a social media post following a meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.
The former president met with Zelensky at Pope Francis's funeral in Rome on Saturday, where the two leaders held a one-on-one conversation in St Peter's Basilica.
After departing Rome, Trump took to his Truth Social platform to unleash a tirade about the ongoing war.
"There was no reason for Putin to be shooting missiles into civilian areas, cities and towns, over the last few days," Trump wrote in his post.
Trump made the post just hours after his trip to the Vatican
PA/Getty/Reuters
Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump attend the funeral Mass of Pope Francis
Reuters
The President suggested the Russian leader might be insincere about peace efforts, adding: "It makes me think that maybe he doesn't want to stop the war, he's just tapping me along."
Trump then proposed alternative approaches to dealing with Putin, including "Banking" or "Secondary Sanctions".
"Too many people are dying!!!" he concluded in his uncharacteristically critical post about the Russian leader.
The meeting between the two leaders lasted about 15 minutes, according to Zelensky's office, with images showing them leaning in close to each other with no aides present. Zelensky later described it as a "good meeting" on his Telegram channel.
LATEST DEVELOPMENTS
Trump has previously praised PutinGetty
Prime Minister Keir Starmer and President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky
PA
"One-on-one, we managed to discuss a lot. We hope for a result from all the things that were spoken about," the Ukrainian leader wrote. He called it "a very symbolic meeting that has the potential to become historic if we achieve joint results".
A White House spokesman described the conversation as "very productive". The meeting comes at a critical time in negotiations aimed at ending the conflict between Ukraine and Russia.
Significant differences have emerged between Washington's position and that of Ukraine and its European allies. The Trump administration has proposed legally recognising Crimea as Russian territory, something Kyiv and European partners consider a red line.
Other points of contention include the timeline for lifting sanctions on Russia, security guarantees for Ukraine, and financial compensation.
Russian President Vladimir Putin met with US special envoy Steve Witkoff
Reuters
Trump appeared to blame Obama
GettyTrump has previously warned his administration would abandon peace efforts if the two sides fail to reach an agreement soon.
In his lengthy Truth Social post, Trump also criticised media coverage of his peace efforts, particularly targeting The New York Times.
"No matter what deal I make with respect to Russia/Ukraine, no matter how good it is, even if it's the greatest deal ever made, The Failing New York Times will speak BADLY of it," he wrote.
Trump blamed former President Barack Obama for allowing Russia to take Crimea "without even a shot being fired". He insisted he had "nothing to do with this stupid war" and was "just trying to clean up the mess."
