US President Donald Trump said on Thursday that he did not remember calling his Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelenskyy a dictator.
Trump made this statement at a press conference held following his meeting with visiting British Prime Minister Keir Starmer.
In response to a question about whether he still considers Zelensky a dictator, Trump said, “Did I say that? I can’t believe I said that. Next question.”
On 19 February, Trump posted a harsh criticism of the Ukrainian president on his social networking site Truth Social, saying, “As a dictator without elections, Zelensky should act quickly or he will have no country left.” His comments were met with widespread international criticism.
During the press conference, Trump also discussed the ongoing negotiations on Ukraine between the US and Russia. He expressed confidence that any deal struck would hold, saying that he has known Russian President Vladimir Putin for a very long time and did not think he would break his word.
When asked if Putin might launch a new attack on Ukraine, Trump responded, “No, I don’t think so.”
Trump declined to discuss the deployment of peacekeeping forces following a potential peace agreement, stating that he did not want to talk about peacekeeping until there is an agreement.
