President Donald Trump said Saturday it’s “time for Ukraine to get a new president,” escalating a public feud with Volodymyr Zelenskyy over Ukrainian strikes on Russian oil refineries and a new U.S. deal easing sanctions on Russian diesel.
Trump made the remark to reporters outside the White House before leaving for a rally in Tennessee. He accused Zelenskyy of worsening global fuel problems by continuing to authorize attacks on Russian refineries.
“He’d better d— well stop,” Trump said.
Trump argued Ukraine should hold off on hitting Russian refineries given the potential fallout for global energy supplies.
“We said, ‘you can do whatever you want to Russia, don’t hit the refineries’, because that’s a world problem that’s caused,” Trump said.
He also faulted Zelenskyy for failing to reach a deal to end the war, now in its fourth year since Russia’s full-scale invasion in February 2022.
“He could have made many deals and for some reason, he never does,” Trump said.
The clash followed Zelenskyy’s criticism of a new U.S.-Russia agreement that would temporarily ease sanctions on Russian diesel exports. Trump confirmed Friday that Washington and Moscow had agreed to suspend diesel export restrictions until April 7, a move that could release millions of tons of Russian diesel into U.S. and global markets at a time when Americans are paying more at the pump.
Zelenskyy warned the arrangement could hand Russia extra cash to buy weapons and keep its war going.
The dispute comes as both Russia and Ukraine have intensified strikes on energy facilities, transportation networks and other infrastructure. Trump has been pushing to bring down fuel prices as U.S. energy costs climb amid the broader conflict with Iran.
Trump’s comments ratchet up pressure on Zelenskyy to move toward ending the war with Russia.
