Trump says Ukraine needs new president who can make deal with Russia; Zelensky ally fires back
On October 10, US President Donald Trump told reporters it was time for Ukraine to elect a new president who can make a deal to end the war with Russia, accusing Volodymyr Zelensky of being able to end the conflict "many times" but choosing not to. The remarks came a day after Trump announced a deal struck with Vladimir Putin during a phone call to allow Russian diesel fuel onto US and world markets, with the US Treasury issuing a general license valid until April 7, 2027. Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiha replied that Zelensky has the support of the Ukrainian people and that the choice of leader is theirs to make. Russia's special envoy Kirill Dmitriev called Trump's call for new leadership a "landmark and historic event," while EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said Europe would not ease pressure on Moscow.
Key points
- On October 10, Trump said it is time for Ukraine to elect a new president who can make a deal to end the war, accusing Zelensky of failing to do so.
Why it matters
Trump publicly called on a wartime ally to change its president during an active conflict, an unusual intervention in another country's internal affairs. The call followed his announcement of a US–Russia deal allowing Russian diesel into US and world markets, which Ukraine and European partners say gives Moscow additional revenue to continue the war and weakens pressure on the Kremlin. Ukraine's negotiating team was meeting with US envoys in Miami when the diesel deal was made public, prompting the talks to end early and the Ukrainian delegation to head home. Moscow's special envoy publicly welcomed the US position, while the EU's top diplomat said Europe would not ease pressure on Russia and announced a new sanctions package, signalling a widening transatlantic split.
What happened
On October 10, speaking to journalists before traveling to Tennessee, US President Donald Trump said it is time for Ukraine to elect a new president who can make a deal to end the war with Russia. He accused Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky of being able to end the conflict "many times" but choosing not to, and criticized Ukrainian strikes on Russian oil refineries as a "world problem" affecting diesel supplies and American farmers. Trump said the United States had told Zelensky he could do "whatever he wants" to Russia but should not hit refineries. He repeated his claim that the war would not have started if he had been president in 2022, attributed the conflict to "incompetence," and said Russia has occupied 30% of Ukraine's territory with over two million killed on both sides — figures that reporting in the same accounts pegs closer to about 19% occupied territory and does not corroborate.
How Ukrainian sources describe it
Ukrainian sources center the reaction of Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiha, who said Zelensky has the people's support and that the choice of leader belongs to Ukrainians, not foreign statements. They frame the diesel deal as a unilateral concession that strengthens Moscow's ability to continue the war, tying the deadly Russian strikes on Zaporizhzhia and attacks on Kyiv directly to the easing of sanctions. Several outlets stress that the Ukrainian delegation in Miami was not informed of the deal before it was publicly announced, presenting it as a breach of partnership and an attempt to use the Ukrainian team as a "screen" while Trump negotiated with Putin. They highlight EU partners' response, particularly Kaja Kallas's criticism and the planned 19th EU sanctions package, as evidence that Europe is not aligning with the US approach.
How international sources describe it
International outlets tend to lead with Trump's headline statement that Ukraine needs a new president and to reproduce his criticism of Zelensky without the rebuttal framing common in Ukrainian reporting. They give substantial weight to Trump's domestic political context, emphasizing that the diesel deal and pressure on Kyiv are tied to US fuel prices, the Iran conflict, and the upcoming midterm elections. Russian reaction is given direct visibility, with Kirill Dmitriev's "landmark and historic" line quoted prominently. Some international reporting frames the warning to Zelensky on refinery strikes as a straightforward policy message tied to global diesel supply, and most treat Trump's 30% territory figure as a claim rather than a verified number.
Where reporting differs
Sources disagree on where exactly Trump made the October 10 remarks — some say the White House, others Joint Base Andrews in Maryland before his departure for Tennessee, and at least one says Maryland without further specification. Reporting also varies on Trump's framing of the war's cause: most quote him saying the conflict began because of "incompetence" and would not have happened if he had won the 2020 election, while at least one source frames his claim as conditional on his being president in 2022. Trump's figures of 30% of Ukraine occupied and two million killed are not corroborated elsewhere in the same accounts, which put occupied territory at roughly 19% and do not confirm the casualty total.
Background
The October 10 statement followed a phone call on October 9 between Trump and Vladimir Putin that produced a deal for Russia to supply over 300,000 tonnes of diesel immediately, 500,000 tonnes in November, then one million tonnes, and up to three million more, with the US Treasury issuing a general license valid until April 7, 2027. The announcement came while Ukrainian and European negotiators were meeting US special envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner in Miami; the Ukrainian side said it learned of the deal only at the public announcement, and the talks ended early. Putin's aide Yuri Ushakov said Putin in the same call rejected the possibility of peace talks and stressed Russia would continue fighting until it achieves "all its goals." The diesel deal diverges from a broad Russia sanctions law Trump signed the previous month aimed at limiting Russian oil and gas revenues, and Trump linked it to high US diesel prices driven by a US–Israeli military operation against Iran that began in February and by Iran closing the Strait of Hormuz. Under martial law declared on February 24, 2022, elections in Ukraine are banned; a KIIS poll published in October found 71% of Ukrainians oppose holding elections now, while 53% think Zelensky should limit himself to one term and 42% would support him running again.