National security adviser Mike Waltz was asked on Thursday who President Donald Trump believes is “more responsible” for Russia’s war in Ukraine — Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky or Russian President Vladimir Putin.
The question came from Fox News reporter Peter Doocy in response to recent attacks by Trump on Ukraine and Zelensky, who he blamed for the war and called a “dictator.”
“Who does he think is more responsible for the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Putin or Zelensky?” Doocy asked.
“Well, look, his goal is to bring this war to an end, period,” Waltz responded. “And there has been ongoing fighting on both sides. It is World War I-style trench warfare. His frustration with President Zelensky is, that you’ve heard, is multifold.”
“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,” he continued. “So some of the rhetoric coming out of Kiev, frankly, and insults to President Trump were unacceptable, number one.”
Waltz said that Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent’s recent trip to Ukraine was a “historic opportunity” in which America is securing future supplies of key natural resources from Ukraine in exchange for assistance that it is being given.
“So case in point, there’s a foundry that processes aluminum in Ukraine — it’s been damaged,” he said. “It’s not at its current capacity. If that is restored, it would account for America’s entire imports of aluminum for an entire year. That one foundry.”
“There are tremendous resources there,” he added. “Not only is that long-term security for Ukraine, not only do we help them grow the pie with investments, but we do have an obligation to the American taxpayer in helping them recoup the hundreds of billions that have occurred. So rather than enter into some constructive conversations about what that deal should be going forward, we got a lot of rhetoric in the media that was incredibly unfortunate.”
WATCH:
.@pdoocy: “Who does he think is more responsible for the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Putin or Zelenskyy?
National Security Adviser Michael Waltz: “Well look, his goal Peter, is to bring this war to an end. Period.” pic.twitter.com/FuNy1PL7Ch
— CSPAN (@cspan) February 20, 2025
