Ukraine-Russia war latest: Putin sees Trump as ‘weak’ report claims after Zelensky rebukes Kremlin ‘manipulation’
Moscow sees Donald Trump as weak and easy to manipulate, a bombshell report has claimed, with Mr Trump and Vladimir Putin set to discuss a Ukraine ceasefire over the phone.
Russian officials in the Kremlin believe the US president lacks a core set of principles, a European intelligence official told the Washington Post citing recent intelligence.
It comes after the Kremlin confirmed on Friday that Putin and Mr Trump would directly discuss proposals for a 30-day ceasefire in Ukraine – after the Russian president held talks with US special envoy Steve Witkoff late on Thursday.
Putin expressed “solidarity” with the White House’s position on a ceasefire to Mr Witkoff – but believes there is “still a lot to be done” before a truce can become reality.
Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky has rebuked Putin’s remarks as “Russian manipulation”, saying he is deliberately delaying the possibility of a ceasefire without explicitly rejecting it because he wants to “kill more Ukrainians”.
In his nightly address, Mr Zelensky said: “Putin often does this – he does not say ‘no’ directly, but he does it in such a way that practically everything only delays and makes normal decisions impossible.”
Mr Trump said on Thursday night he will now see “whether or not Russia is there, and if they’re not, it’ll be a very disappointing moment for the world”.
