From calling Putin a 'genius' to 'crazy': How Trump's stance on Russia-Ukraine war turned in 3 years of intense fighting - TIMELINE

As the war between Russia and Ukraine intensified over three years, US President Donald Trump has been fluctuating his stance on whom to support. From calling Russian President Vladimir Putin a "genius" and an " attack on Ukraine "savvy in 2022, to calling him "crazy" in 2025, the bond between the two leaders has come a long way. The change in the Trump administration's stance not only impacted the Russia-Ukraine war, but also brought Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky closer after the White House spat.

After Russia began the attacks in 2022, Trump for a very long time supported Russia in its war in Ukraine, while also pledging to end the war within 24 hours of becoming president.

He used to bring this up in his presidential campaign, claiming that if he had been president, he would have ended the war in a day. Trump even praised Putin's moves as "genius" and "savvy", however, it did not last long.

This changed when Trump, during his meeting with Zelensky in the Oval Office in February, heated up, as the two leaders engaged in a war of words. He even blamed Zelensky for the war during the meeting.

But his stance kept changing, first against any war between Russia and Ukraine, then slamming Zelensky for the war, and now "frustrated" with Putin for continuing the attacks in Ukraine.

Let's see how things changed in 3 years - Timeline

2023-2024

While campaigning for the presidency, Trump blamed the Ukrainian president for the Russia-Ukraine war. He even refused to say whether he wanted Ukraine to win or not.

According to a Washington Post report, privately, he even said that he could end the war by pressuring Ukraine to give up its territory. However, publicly, he vowed to end the war within 24 hours of becoming the president.

Feb 18, 2025

Trump lashed out at Zelensky, calling him a "dictator without elections", further triggering Ukrainians. The US president further claimed that Zelensky was responsible for Russia's war in Ukraine.

This came after US and Russian officials held talks in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, without involving Ukrainian officials. Trump defended the absence of Ukraine in the meeting, saying, “Today I heard, ‘Oh, we weren’t invited. Well, you’ve been there for three years. You should have ended it. You should never have started it. You could have made a deal.”

Feb 28, 2025

Zelensky visited the US to meet Trump on February 28. During their meeting at the White House, the conversation between the two leaders quickly turned into a war of words. Not just Trump, US Vice President JD Vance also joined in and blamed Zelensky for the war.

Trump told Zelensky, "You’re right now not in a very good position. You’ve allowed yourself to be in a very bad position. You don’t have the cards right now. With us, you start having cards.”

Moreover, Zelensky was about to close a rare earth minerals deal, which eventually got postponed due to the clash.

March 30, 2025

Things changed, and Trump's stance on the Russia-Ukraine war fluctuated. The US president said he was "angry" at Putin for questioning Zelenskyy’s legitimacy.

Trump even threatened that he would consider more tariffs on Russian oil if he and the Russian president could not end “the bloodshed in Ukraine”. However, he also said that while he was “disappointed” with Putin, he also trusted him, adding, “I don’t think he’s going to go back on his word.”

April 24, 2025

The US president lashed out at Putin in a post on Truth Social, asking him to "STOP" the war in Ukraine, while criticising him for continuing the attacks.

“I am not happy with the Russian strikes on KYIV,” Trump wrote. “Not necessary, and very bad timing. Vladimir, STOP!”

April 26, 2025

Trump held a meeting with Zelensky at the Vatican on April 26, as the two leaders attended Pope Francis' funeral. It marked their first meeting after the Oval Office spat.

Zelensky described the meeting as a "very symbolic meeting that has the potential to become historic, if we achieve joint results.” While Trump again slammed Putin for attacks in Ukraine, saying that the attacks made him “think that maybe he doesn’t want to stop the war, he’s just tapping me along, and has to be dealt with differently, through ‘Banking’ or ‘Secondary Sanctions?”

April 30, 2025

As Putin-Trump's bond took a turn, the US and Ukraine signed a mineral agreement, affirming a "long-term strategic alignment”. Through the deal, the US guaranteed "support for Ukraine’s security, prosperity, reconstruction and integration into global economic frameworks.”

“This agreement signals clearly to Russia that the Trump Administration is committed to a peace process centered on a free, sovereign and prosperous Ukraine over the long term,” US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said after the deal was signed.

May 19, 2025

Trump held a phone call with Putin in May, as he appeared to agree to Russia's demand to postpone a ceasefire, which led to the continued war in Russia and Ukraine.

May 25, 2025

As Russia did not stop the war even after Trump made Putin understand, the US president threatened new sanctions after the Kremlin's large-scale attack on Ukraine. He further said that Putin has gone "absolutely crazy".

“I’m not happy with what Putin is doing. He’s killing a lot of people,” Trump told reporters. “I don’t know what the hell happened to Putin,” he continued. “I’ve known him a long time.”

In a post on Truth Social, Trump continued to bash the Russian president, writing, "Putin has gone absolutely CRAZY!” “Missiles and drones are being shot into Cities in Ukraine, for no reason whatsoever. I’ve always said that he wants ALL of Ukraine, not just a piece of it, and maybe that’s proving to be right, but if he does, it will lead to the downfall of Russia!”

June 25, 2025

In June, Trump and Zelensky met during the NATO Summit in The Hague. The US president described the meeting as "very nice". “Couldn’t have been nicer. I think he’d like to see an end to this," Trump said about Zelensky.

He further added that he would “speak to Vladimir Putin and see if we can get it ended.”

July 8, 2025

Trump expressed disappointment with Putin, saying that he is killing a lot of people. He further said that Putin is nice all the time, but turns out to be meaningless.

“I’m not happy with Putin. I can tell you that much right now, because he’s killing a lot of people,” Trump said. “You want to know the truth? He is very nice all the time, but it turns out to be meaningless.”

July 13, 2025

As the relations between Trump and Zelensky got better, the US president said that he would provide Ukraine with advanced weapons, including Patriot missiles, funded by the European Union.

He even said that he was “disappointed” with Putin, telling reporters: “I thought he was somebody that meant what he said.”

Trump even gave an ultimatum to Putin to end the war in 50 days or face high tariffs.