Trump says Russia 'gained virtually no land' in Ukraine offensive despite heavy costs
U.S. President Donald Trump on Sept. 25 said that Russia has made almost no territorial gains during recent attacks on Ukraine, despite spending vast resources and suffering significant losses.
"With all of the heavy bombardment over the last two weeks, they’ve gained almost no land," Trump told the press during a meeting with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in the White House, talking about Russia's latest offensive operations in Ukraine.
"I’m not going to ever call anybody a paper tiger, but Russia spent millions and millions of dollars on bombs, missiles, ammunition, and lives, their lives, and they've gained virtually no land."
The comments underscore Trump's shifting rhetoric on the war in Ukraine, as his efforts to broker peace between Kyiv and Moscow yielded little result. The Kremlin has repeatedly refused calls for a ceasefire while escalating aerial attacks on Ukrainian cities.
Trump noted that it is "a shame" that Russia continues to kill so many people, adding that "(Russian President Vladimir) Putin ought to stop."
Russia currently occupies roughly 20% of Ukrainian territory, including Crimea and parts of the Donbas region seized in 2014, as well as further swathes of land captured shortly after the outbreak of the full-scale invasion in early 2022.
Subsequently, Russian forces have advanced at an incremental pace. Since November 2022, Russian forces have only captured 5,842 square kilometers of Ukrainian territory, accounting for about 0.97% of the country's landmass, the DeepState monitoring group said in August.
The spring and summer of 2025 saw Moscow launch new offensives in Ukraine's east and northeast, focused on key strongholds like Pokrovsk in Donetsk Oblast.
The U.S. president's comments on Russia's performance in the war mirror those made earlier this week.
After meeting President Volodymyr Zelensky at the U.N. General Assembly, Trump declared on Sept. 23 that Ukraine "is in a position to fight and win all of Ukraine back in its original form" — with European support.
The U.S. president also compared Russia to a "paper tiger" — though he walked back the comment during a meeting with Erdogan — and highlighted its mounting economic troubles.
The Wall Street Journal reported that Trump's change of opinion about Ukraine's ability to defeat Russia followed briefings from American officials on the current battlefield situation and a possible future Ukrainian offensive.
Speaking alongside Erdogan, Trump said he would like Turkey to stop buying Russian oil, reiterating his earlier calls on Europe to cut off Russian energy purchases.
At the same time, Trump has repeatedly praised Erdogan during the meeting and said the Turkish leader could have "big influence" on the war as he is respected by both Russia and Ukraine.
While Kyiv and some European officials have welcomed Trump's change in rhetoric, others see it as a signal that the White House seeks to reduce its involvement and shift responsibility for the war to Europe.
The change also comes amid surging tensions between NATO and Russia after allied countries said that Russian drones and jets have repeatedly violated their airspace. Trump has said that NATO countries should shoot down Russian aircraft breaching their borders, a statement welcomed by many eastern members.
