The US president has said that he has been working “tirelessly” to stop the bloodshed
US President Donald Trump has affirmed that he is determined to broker a ceasefire between Ukraine and Russia.
He stressed the importance of ending hostilities during his address to a joint session of Congress on Tuesday evening.
”Millions of Ukrainians and Russians have been needlessly killed or wounded in this horrific and brutal conflict with no end in sight,” he said, adding that he has been “working tirelessly” to bring about a truce.
Trump emphasized that while people being killed in the conflict are not Americans, he wants the bloodshed to stop.
He criticized US allies in Europe, claiming that they are spending more money on buying Russian energy than on assistance to Kiev. He claimed that the American funding of Ukraine has been disproportionately high, considering that it poses relatively small risks to the US.
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“The United States has sent hundreds of billions of dollars to support Ukraine’s defense… You want to keep it going for another five years?” he asked the audience.
The speech came just days after Ukrainian leader Vladimir Zelensky had a heated exchange with Trump and Vice President J.D. Vance at the White House. Zelensky was asked to cut his trip short and leave following the tense spat last Friday, with a draft minerals deal between the US and Ukraine left unsigned as a result.
Trump said on Tuesday that the agreement, with which he expects to recoup the money previously spent on aid to Ukraine, has remained on track. He quoted a statement issued earlier by Zelensky, in which he claimed that he was ready to negotiate a ceasefire and to sign the minerals deal.
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