US President Donald Trump on Sunday called Russian President Vladimir Putin “crazy” after Moscow launched a deadly barrage of drones against Ukraine, even as the warring nations completed a large-scale prisoner exchange.
At least 13 people were killed when Russia launched a record number of drones against Ukraine overnight to Sunday.
“I’ve always had a very good relationship with Vladimir Putin of Russia, but something has happened to him. He has gone absolutely CRAZY!” Trump wrote in a post on his Truth Social platform.
Photo: Reuters
“I’ve always said that he wants ALL of Ukraine, not just a piece of it, and maybe that’s proving to be right, but if he does, it will lead to the downfall of Russia!” he added.
His comments marked a rare rebuke to Putin, who he often speaks of with admiration. The US president has expressed increasing frustration with Moscow’s position in the deadlocked truce negotiations with Kyiv.
Trump earlier on Sunday told reporters that he was “not happy” about the latest attack on Ukraine and that he was “absolutely” considering increasing sanctions on Moscow.
“I’ve known him a long time, always gotten along with him, but he’s sending rockets into cities and killing people, and I don’t like it at all,” he said.
Ukraine’s emergency services described an atmosphere of “terror” in the nation after a second straight night of massive Russian airstrikes, including on the capital, Kyiv.
Those killed in the latest Russian strikes included victims aged eight, 12 and 17 in the northwestern region of Zhytomyr, officials said.
“Without truly strong pressure on the Russian leadership, this brutality cannot be stopped,” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy wrote on social media.
“The silence of America, the silence of others around the world only encourages Putin,” he said. “Sanctions will certainly help.”
In his social media post, Trump also criticized Zelenskiy, a frequent target of his ire, accusing him of “doing his Country no favors by talking the way he does.”
“Everything out of his mouth causes problems, I don’t like it, and it better stop,” he wrote.
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