Donald Trump says ‘time is now’ to take back Ukrainian territory as he prepares to send weapons
US President Donald Trump has made one of his strongest statements in support of Ukraine regarding the Russian invasion of the country.
The man claimed he could sort out Russia's invasion of Ukraine in just 24 hours, an assertion which shattered on contact with reality, and his support for the besieged nation has often been less than hoped for.
Earlier this year, he temporarily suspended military aid to Ukraine and insulted Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy during a White House visit.
He's often seemed quite pally with Vladimir Putin, though he recently said the Russian leader 'really let me down' over efforts to end the invasion.
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Trying to get Trump to pick a lane and stay consistent has been a diplomatic challenge, but he has now voiced some stronger support for Ukraine.
Taking to Truth Social, the US president declared that he finally understood the situation and thought Ukraine had a chance to repel the Russian invaders.
He added that he thought Ukraine would get 'all of Ukraine back in its original form', which would mean the reclamation of Crimea that Russia took in 2014.
He said: "After getting to know and fully understand the Ukraine/Russia Military and Economic situation and, after seeing the Economic trouble it is causing Russia, I think Ukraine, with the support of the European Union, is in a position to fight and WIN all of Ukraine back in its original form.
“With time, patience, and the financial support of Europe and, in particular, NATO, the original Borders from where this War started, is very much an option. Why not?”
He added that he would 'supply weapons to NATO for NATO to do what they want with them', which, given his words on the EU supporting Ukraine, sounds like he expects them to buy American weapons and pass them along to the Ukrainians.
Trump also reiterated his demands that European countries stop buying Russian oil, and Zelenskyy praised the new words from the US president as a 'big shift' in his position.
Calling Russia 'a paper tiger' for failing to conquer Ukraine for the past three-and-a-half years, Trump said that 'Putin and Russia are in BIG Economic trouble' as he indicated the fuel crisis going on in Putin's country.
According to the FT, Russia has had to cut down on oil exports as Ukraine has been striking oil refineries, having hit 16 of Russia's 38 since the start of August.
Disrupting Russia's oil production means they've got less to export to fund their war efforts and less to sell domestically, pushing up fuel prices for Russians and possibly making them less content with the war.
Trump also said that NATO countries should shoot down Russian aircraft which violate their airspace, and that he would know in a month's time whether or not he still trusted Putin.
That's his position for now, let's see if he sticks with it.
Elsewhere at the United Nations, Trump gave a 56-minute speech during which he complained about a 'bad escalator and a bad teleprompter', then told European countries they were 'going to hell' over immigration.
Topics: Donald Trump, Ukraine, Russia, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Vladimir Putin, NATO, US News
Joe Harker