Zelensky dismisses Trumps verdict on Putin as personal opinion: Trust me

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky insisted that he understands the “mentality of the Russians” better than President Trump and his officials — as he issued a warning to the president.Zelensky roundly rejected Trump’s conclusion that Vladimir Putin wants to stop his bloody war on Ukraine, cautioning his Washington counterpart about the Russian tyrant’s true motives.“With all due respect to President Trump, of course.I think it’s just his personal opinion maybe,” Zelensky told ABC News’ “This Week” in an interview that aired Sunday.“Inside his [Putin’s] mind, it’s impossible to end this war without total defeat of Ukraine.

If Ukraine is not defeated, he will not feel that it’s a victory for him,” he continued.“Trust me, we understand the Russians much better, the mentality of the Russians, than the Americans understand the mentality of [the] Russians.I know for sure that Putin doesn’t want to stop the war.”Zelensky’s comments come after Trump told since-suspended ABC News correspondent Terry Moran in April, “I think he does,” when asked if Putin wants peace.Last week, however, Trump had a roughly 75-minute phone call with Putin, which he described as a “good conversation” but one that he conceded would not lead to “immediate peace.”Trump has grown increasingly critical of Putin in public, blasting the dictator for the onslaught of drone and missile attacks near civilian enclaves in Ukraine.Still, the president has balanced that with his desire to be a third-party mediator in the years-long war, pivoting from the Biden administration’s policy of standing steadfastly behind Ukraine.Zelensky, for his part, continues to rally for Trump to further tighten the screws on the Kremlin as a way to force Putin to stop the bloodhsed.“They will remain very, very pragmatic if very hard pressure is applied on them, then they will stop the war,” he predicted of the Russians.

“But then the question, the next question w...