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President Donald Trump have compared Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky PT Barnum – the famous American showman and huckster who popularized the three-ring circus – arguing that he had received billions of American aid and had little to show for it.
In an extensive interview with politico Published on Tuesday, Trump expressed admiration for both Disappointment with Zelenskysaying that he should accept peace agreement To end the war in Ukraine.
The President said, “He’s a great salesman.” “I call him PT Barnum. You know who PT Barnum was, right?”
Trump added, “One of the greatest men on earth.” “He can sell any product at any time. That was his expression, I can sell any product at any time. It was true. He said, it doesn’t matter whether it works or not… But he’s PT Barnum, you know. He… uh, tricked Joe Biden into giving him $350 billion. And look what he got… He got. About 25 percent of his country is missing.”
Trump, whose career has focused on personal branding, has been compared to PT Barnum in the past and has embraced it.
“Look, people call you by name,” he said meet the Press In 2016. “We need a little bit of PT Barnum, ’cause we need build image Of our country.”
Trump’s latest comments come as his administration works to find a solution ukraine–russia warWhich has been prevalent for almost four years. Despite months of diplomatic negotiations and high-profile summits, efforts to achieve peace have been unsuccessful.
In late November, the United States’ 28 point peace proposal The leak caused concern among Ukrainian and European leaders, who claimed it had given in to many of Russia’s demands, including forcing Ukraine to give up some of its territory in the east.
Last week, Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff met the Russian President. Vladimir Putin Efforts were made to reduce differences in Moscow. Zelensky met European leaders on Monday to discuss the latest US-backed peace plan.
“He has to read the resolution,” Trump said of Zelensky. “He hasn’t read it yet… It would be good if he did. You know, a lot of people are dying.”
Trump said Zelensky needs to start “admitting things” because “he’s losing.”
“We don’t want leave anythingZelensky said during an online press conference on Monday. We have no legal right to do so under Ukrainian law, our Constitution and international law. And we have no moral rights either.” He said he would send Trump a revised peace plan.
Currently occupied by Russia one fifth Ukraine and its military have made incremental but steady gains in recent months. The conflict has been extremely costly, resulting in damage around 1.4 million casualtiesAccording to a June analysis by the Center for Strategic and International Studies.
Trump was also asked about one Recent Interview by His eldest son, Donald Trump Jr., who claimed the president could move away from Ukraine.
“That’s not right,” Trump clarified. “But that’s not at all wrong… They have to play ball. If they, uh… if they don’t read the agreements, potential agreements, you know, uh, it’s not easy with Russia because Russia has the upper hand… the upper hand. And they’ve always done that. They’re too big.”
He added: “I give tremendous credit to the people of Ukraine and the Ukrainian military for, you know, bravery and fighting and all that. But you know, at some point, size will generally win.”
“This is not a war that should have happened. What a tragedy for humanity.”
Most Ukrainians appear ready to end the deadliest war in Europe since World War II. An August Gallup poll found that 69 percent of Ukrainians support negotiated agreementThat marks a big reversal from 2022, when only 22 percent said the same.
politico It also asked the President whether he believed elections should be held in Ukraine, which have been suspended during the war.
“Yes, I think the time has come,” Trump said. “I think the Ukrainian people should have… that choice. And maybe Zelensky will win. I don’t know who will win. But they haven’t had an election for a long time. You know, they talk about democracy, but it gets to the point where it’s not democracy anymore.”
Elsewhere in the interview, Trump accused former President Barack Obama and Joe Biden, his Democratic predecessor, of laying the groundwork for war in Ukraine.
He also criticized European leaders, calling them “weak” and “politically correct” on immigration.
“His immigration policy is a disaster. What he’s doing with immigration is a disaster,” Trump said.
The conversation later turned to domestic politics, with Trump facing questions about his economic policies, a topic that has raised concerns among people many of his own supporters,
Asked what grade he would give his economy, Trump responded: “A-plus-plus-plus-plus-plus.”