‘Time for Ukraine to get a new president’: Trump lashes out at Zelensky over Russia strikes

US President Donald Trump on Saturday called for Ukraine to elect a new president willing to agree to a peace deal, criticising Volodymyr Zelensky over Ukrainian strikes on Russian oil refineries that he said had contributed to rising diesel prices ahead of the US elections.
Speaking to reporters at the White House, Trump said he had told Zelensky he could continue military operations against Russia but warned him against targeting refineries.
“He better damn well stop,” Trump said, adding that he believed “it's time for Ukraine to get a new president” who would agree to end the war.

comes amid growing tensions between Washington and Kyiv over Ukraine’s campaign against Russia’s oil infrastructure, which has disrupted fuel supplies and added pressure to global energy markets. Ukraine has intensified long-range strikes on Russian refineries, seeking to weaken Moscow’s ability to finance and sustain its war effort. Kyiv has claimed its attacks have disabled 51 per cent of Russia’s oil-refining capacity.

According to an Axios report, Trump decided to strike a deal with Russian President Vladimir Putin to supply diesel after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky ignored repeated American requests to halt refinery attacks. The report also said Trump’s envoys, Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, raised the possibility of cutting intelligence-sharing with Ukraine if the strikes continued, although a US official denied that a threat had been made.

Trump announced an agreement for Russia to supply diesel to US and global markets amid soaring fuel prices ahead of the November 3 US midterm elections. Zelensky criticised the move, calling it “not fair and not honest” in an interview with Axios, and warned that easing sanctions could benefit Moscow without securing concessions.