'It's all bullsh*t' —Trump responds to Russia's attacks on Zelensky's legitimacy
U.S. President Donald Trump responded to the Kremlin's recent attacks on President Volodymyr Zelensky's legitimacy as a leader, dismissing their objections as "posturing" in comments to reporters on Aug. 26.
"It doesn't matter what they say. Everybody's posturing. It's all bullsh*it, okay. Everybody's posturing," Trump said in a Cabinet Meeting at the White House.
Trump's comment came in response to Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, who told NBC News in an interview on Aug. 22 that the Kremlin does not view Zelensky as the legitimate leader of Ukraine. Russian President Vladimir Putin could not sign a peace deal with Zelensky, Lavrov claimed, because Zelensky lacks the authority to sign legal documents.
Lavrov also said Putin was not prepared to meet with Zelensky and had no plans to set up talks, despite Trump's push for a meeting and Zelensky's willingness to discuss territorial issues directly with Putin.
The White House has called for a bilateral summit between Putin and Zelensky as the next step in negotiating a deal to end Russia's war in Ukraine. Trump met Putin for peace talks in Alaska on Aug. 15, then held a separate meeting with Zelensky and European leaders at the White House on Aug. 18.
Since then, no tangible progress has been made towards peace in Ukraine. While Kyiv's international partners hash out plans for postwar security guarantees, Russia continues to bombard Ukrainian cities while delaying further negotiations.
Although Trump dismissed the Kremlin's rhetoric on the Ukrainian government's legitimacy, he did not pledge to impose consequences for Moscow's continued stalling — nor did he mount a defense of Zelensky.
When asked if there was a deadline for Russia to make a deal or face penalties, Trump declined to set a timeline, though he did say economic sanctions were a possibility.
"It's very serious, what I have in mind, if I have to do it," he said, saying that the U.S. could potentially launch "an economic war" that would be "bad for Russia."
Trump nonetheless made a point to say he did not want that for Russia and that Ukraine could face consequences as well.
"Zelensky's not exactly innocent either. It takes two people to tango," he said.
Trump also said that his primary hope was to stop the war and that he hoped to end the violence, possibly by "doing sanctions or by just being me or by using a very strong tariff system that's very costly to Russia or Ukraine or whoever."
Since taking office in January, Trump has passed no new sanctions against Moscow, despite issuing several threats. In some cases, he has even eased restrictions, as Russia intensifies its aerial attacks against Ukraine.
