Donald Trump has attempted to give Ukraine some advice on how to handle Russia after Vladimir Putin launched a fresh wave of attacks on the country.
For more than three years now, the Ukrainians have been subjected to invasion and bombardment from Putin's Russia, with the latest wave of attacks seeing over 500 drones and 40 missiles launched at Ukraine.
Among the targets was a US-owned weapons manufacturer in western Ukraine, and Volodymyr Zelenskyy described the strikes as a sign of the 'outrageous' intent of Putin.
Just last week, the Russian president was in Alaska to discuss the terms upon which he'd halt the war with Ukraine, and it turns out what he wants is for them to give up more territory than he's managed to take in over three years of warfare.
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He wants land, a guarantee that Ukraine will not join NATO and for Western troops to stay out of the country so they cannot provide security guarantees in case Russia invades again.
Zelenskyy has made it clear Ukraine is not intent on surrendering territory to the aggressor, and claimed that the Russian strike on a US-owned facility was a 'deliberate strike' which was very 'telling' as to Putin's opinion on Donald Trump's attempts to make peace.
The recent strike was one of the largest Russia has launched this year and comes right after attempts from the White House to set the stage for potential peace talks.
Trump recently took to Truth Social to encourage Ukraine to 'FIGHT BACK', while slamming his predecessor Joe Biden for not letting them do so.
He wrote: "It is very hard, if not impossible, to win a war without attacking an invader's country. It’s like a great team in sports that has a fantastic defense, but is not allowed to play offense.
"There is no chance of winning! It is like that with Ukraine and Russia. Crooked and grossly incompetent Joe Biden would not let Ukraine FIGHT BACK, only DEFEND. How did that work out?
"Regardless, this is a war that would have NEVER happened if I were President - ZERO CHANCE."
He then declared there would be 'interesting times ahead'.
It should probably be pointed out that earlier this year, Trump suspended all military aid to Ukraine, hampering the invaded country's ability to fight off the Russian invaders for a time before supply resumed.
Speaking of Ukraine's attempts to 'play offense', Reuters reports that their military claims it has struck a Russian oil pumping station in a blow to the aggressor nation's energy infrastructure.
Russia's oil industry and the money which flows from it are playing an increasingly crucial part in funding Putin's war machine, so any blow Ukraine can strike at it will be keenly felt.
Topics: Donald Trump, Ukraine, Russia, Vladimir Putin, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, World News
Joe Harker