US President Donald Trump has made it clear that he is not responsible for the Russia-Ukraine war, even as he emphasized his efforts to bring it to an end.
Trump described the war as the fault of his predecessor, Joe Biden, and accused Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky of working alongside Biden to mishandle the situation, allowing it to escalate.
This comes after Zelensky urged Trump to visit Ukraine before making any decisions regarding the war.
“Please, before any kind of decisions, any kind of forms of negotiations, come to see people, civilians, warriors, hospitals, churches, children destroyed or dead,” Zelensky said.
Responding via Truth Social, Trump wrote in all caps, “I HAD NOTHING TO DO WITH THIS WAR, BUT AM WORKING DILIGENTLY TO GET THE DEATH AND DESTRUCTION TO STOP.”
The US president went on to claim that if the 2020 presidential election had not been “rigged,” the war would never have started.
“There were so many ways of preventing it from ever starting. But that is the past. Now we have to get it to STOP, AND FAST. SO SAD,” he added.
Earlier, Trump downplayed Russia’s recent strike on the center of the Ukrainian city of Sumy, which killed 34 people, including two children, calling it a mistake.
“I think it was terrible, and I was told they made a mistake, but I think it’s a horrible thing. I think the whole war is a horrible thing,” he said.
Meanwhile, the Kremlin has denied any involvement in the attack on Sumy, stating that the Russian army targets only military and military-related sites.