Editor's note: The article was corrected to indicate that Trump said Biden should have never allowed the war to start, not the military aid.
U.S. President Donald Trump called Russia's deadly attack against Sumy on April 13 "terrible" but suggested it had been carried out by "mistake" without elaborating on how he came to the conclusion.
"I think it was terrible, and I was told they made a mistake, but I think it's a horrible thing. I think the whole war is a horrible thing... for that war to have started is an abuse of power," Trump said when asked about the Russian strike.
"This is (former U.S. President Joe) Biden's war. This is not my war; I've been here for a very short period of time. This is a war that was under Biden. He gave them billions and billions of dollars," Trump said, adding Biden should have never "allowed" the war to start.
Russia targeted Sumy in a deadly attack on April 13, killing at least 34 and leaving 117 people injured. European leaders condemned the Palm Sunday attack, describing it as appalling and "heartbreaking."
Trump described the attack on Sumy as a "mistake," but told reporters to query Russia when asked to elaborate.
"That war is a shame. Millions of people are dead that should be alive. Cities are being destroyed all over Ukraine. The whole culture is gone. It's very certainly very severely hurt," Trump said.
"You know the chapels, the churches, the spirals, all of the things they had in Ukraine were among the most beautiful anywhere in the world. Most of them were knocked down and blown up into a million pieces."
Trump reiterated past remarks that Russia's full-scale war against Ukraine would not occur under his leadership.
"(M)illions of people would be alive except for the fact that the election were rigged because that war would have never started and (Russian President Vladimir) Putin never would have started that war," Trump claimed.
The U.S. President told reporters he wants to put a stop to Russia's war against Ukraine.
"I'm just trying to get it stopped so that we can save a lot of lives. They happen to be Ukrainian and Russian lives, but all I want to do is get it stopped," Trump said.
The U.S. has previously led separate talks with Ukraine and Russia in Saudi Arabia to reach a ceasefire. On April 6, Zelensky said Russia is rejecting an unconditional ceasefire because it wants to continue launching missile strikes from the Black Sea.
Moscow has shown signs it is unwilling to move forward on a peace deal with Ukraine. Russian authorities have listed maximalist demands in ceasefire negotiations with Ukraine and the U.S.
Ukraine has already agreed to a U.S.-proposed full 30-day ceasefire, saying on March 11 that Kyiv is ready if Russia also agrees to the terms. So far, Moscow has refused.
Dominic Culverwell
(Updated: )
