Trump ‘very frustrated’ with Zelensky, says National Security Advisor Mike Waltz
National Security Advisor Mike Waltz said US President Donald Trump was "very, very frustrated" with Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky, as he highlighted the growing rift between the Trump administration and Kyiv.
Waltz on Thursday didn't answer a question about whether Trump believes Russian President Vladimir Putin or Zelensky is more responsible for the ongoing war in Ukraine, CNN reported.
"(Trump's) goal here is to bring this war to an end, period, and there has been ongoing fighting on both sides—it is World War I-style, trench warfare," Waltz told reporters at the White House briefing.
"His frustration with President Zelensky—that you've heard—is multi-fold. One, there needs to be a deep appreciation for what the American people, what the American taxpayer, what President Trump did in his first term, and what we've done since. So some of the rhetoric coming out of Kyiv, frankly, and insults to President Trump, were unacceptable."
On Truth Social on Wednesday, Trump called Zelensky a "dictator without elections", prompting the Ukrainian President to say that Trump "lives in this disinformation space" and is "(helping) Putin out of his isolation".
During the White House briefing, Waltz wouldn't answer whether Trump believes Putin is a dictator.
"Look, President Trump is obviously very frustrated right now with President Zelensky—the fact that he hasn't come to the table, that he hasn't been willing to take this opportunity that we have offered. I think he eventually will get to that point, and I hope so very quickly," he said.
"But President Trump is, as we made clear to our Russian counterparts, and I want to make clear today—he's focused on stopping the fighting and moving forward, and we could argue all day long about what's happened in the past."
