What Russia's doing to Ukraine is 'fine,' Trump says

Editor's Note: This story is being updated.

According to U.S. President Donald Trump, Russia "has been fine on Ukraine" and "hasn't been doing much" to the country it has been attempting to violently conquer for over a decade.

"Russia, frankly, has been fine on Ukraine. They haven't been doing much," Trump told reporters on Oct. 19.

The president's remarks came the same day that a Russian daytime drone strike in a public park killed six people, including two children. The night before, Russia attacked Kyiv with over a dozen ballistic missiles and targeted nearly 30 critical energy facilities across the country.

But Trump had nothing to say about any of that, choosing instead to praise Russian President Vladimir Putin for his restraint in both Ukraine and Iran.

When asked if he was open to a trilateral meeting with Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping, Trump said he was, but that such a meeting wouldn't be for Ukraine's sake — since Russia, apparently, "has been fine on Ukraine." He said the main purpose of the meeting would be to discuss nuclar disarmament.

The president was questioned about the three-way summit after the Wall Street Journal reported that Putin wants to use the meeting — which would exclude President Volodymyr Zelensky — to secure a peace deal favorable to Moscow.

Trump then said he would be willing to talk to Xi about Ukraine, saying "he's been very fair with Ukraine. He hasn't been much involved, and same with Russia."

"They haven't been nearly what they could have been, and I appreciate that."

It's not clear whether Trump was referring to China's support for Russia, or Russia's aggression in Ukraine.

Trump defended his recent deals with Putin and sanctions waivers for Russia, saying the U.S. was negotiating with the Kremlin regarding the release of a high-profile hostage. He also said Russia was "very well-behaved on Iran."

"We also have a very good situation with respect to Iran. (Putin's) laying off Iran," Trump said.

"It's nice because we're hitting Iran very hard, as you know, economically as well as militarily, and Russia's done nothing there that we can see, and I think that's a very positive."

Russia is Iran's close ally and has pledged to assist Tehran in its war with the U.S. Multiple media outlets have reported on Russia shipping weapons to Iran, aiding in missile development, and providing intelligence to help Iran attack U.S. bases in the Middle East.  

Even U.S. General Dan Caine, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, confirmed on April 30  that Russia was supporting Iran in the war with the U.S.

While Ukraine sent its experts to help shoot down Iranian drones attacking Gulf states, Putin pledged to supply Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian with all "the necessary goods" and support the country during the war.

But in his remarks to the media on Oct. 19, Trump seemed convinced that Putin, not Zelensky, was his true ally.

"Russia could have done a lot more to help Iran. Russia's done very little for Iran," Trump insisted.

The U.S. president again lashed out at Zelensky, saying Ukraine should consider getting someone new to negotiate on their behalf.

"We've given a lot to Ukraine. They've given nothing to us."

Ahead of the U.S. midterm elections, Trump has taken a hard turn toward Moscow in an apparent bid to lower domestic fuel prices: On Oct. 9, he announced a plan to purchase Russian diesel, despite years of U.S. sanctions on Russian energy products. He also ordered Ukraine to stop attacking Russian oil refineries.

Lawmakers and critics from both political parties pointed out that the war in Iran was the main driver of the surge in global oil prices, and condemned the deal for rewarding Moscow even as it continued pummeling Ukrainian cities and energy infrastructure.