The Republican billionaire, who returned to office in January vowing to end the war “in 24 hours,“ has long appeared to side with his Russian counterpart, frequently speaking of him with gushing admiration.
But the US president has in recent weeks shown growing frustration with Putin's position in deadlocked truce negotiations with Kyiv.
After Moscow unleashed a particularly deadly barrage of drones against its western neighbor, Trump said on his Truth Social platform that he believed Putin “wants ALL of Ukraine“.
'Absolutely crazy'
There was little sign his criticism made an impact, with Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov suggesting Monday the “very critical moment” was fraught with “emotional reactions”.
Russia's weekend onslaught came as diplomatic efforts to end the three-year war stepped up, with a prisoner exchange and direct talks between the two sides.
“President Trump realizes that when President Putin said on the phone he was ready for peace, or told his envoys he was ready for peace, he lied,“ France’s leader Emmanuel Macron told reporters during a trip to Vietnam.
“I simply hope now that this translates into action.”
Macron said it was time to threaten Russia with “much more massive sanctions” to persuade it to end the conflict.
But it remains unclear what path Trump might choose in coming days, especially since he has not let up on his relentless criticism of Ukraine's leader.
Zelensky was “doing his Country no favors by talking the way he does,“ Trump wrote.
While flush with bluster, Trump's foreign policy achievements to date remain rather meager, be it on Ukraine, the Iran nuclear program or the war raging in Gaza.
While unprecedented for a Western leader, those meetings ultimately appeared to do little to change Kim's provocative behavior.
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