Volodymyr Zelenskyy — the Ukrainian leader whose five-year presidential term officially ended over two years ago — is presently on a media blitz, trying to shore up British and European support.
So far, his efforts have been successful even in Germany, where an ex-Ukrainian special forces officer is on trial for allegedly leading the undersea bombings of the Nord Stream 1 and 2 pipelines in September 2022 — bombings that NATO initially appeared ready to treat as Article 5-triggering attacks.
'We are losing [a] strong partner.'
Zelenskyy has, however, also used his trip abroad to complain about Elon Musk and the United States as well as about President Donald Trump, who suggested on Saturday that Ukraine "should get a new leader who can make a deal."
In an interview that aired on Wednesday, the eponymous host of "Piers Morgan Uncensored" concern-mongered about Trump's decision to lift sanctions on Russian diesel and his call for an energy ceasefire.
Morgan claimed that Trump had "thrown [Zelenskyy] under the bus," then asked Zelenskyy whether he felt "betrayed."
"Really, yes, really, between us," replied Zelenskyy. "But I mean, it's a little bit more complicated than just my emotions or my feelings."
"Our country has to survive, and we count on our real partners, strategic partners — United States," continued the Ukrainian leader. "And President Trump, they wanted us not to attack [Russian oil refineries]. My opinion was, it is not fair."
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On Saturday, Trump said that Ukraine "better damn well stop" attacking Russian oil refineries and stated, "Zelenskyy could have settled this war many times. Many, many times. And he chooses not to."
The following day, he announced an energy ceasefire between Ukraine and Russia.
On Monday, Kyiv claimed that Moscow had violated the ceasefire. Kyiv has since resumed its strikes on Russian oil refineries.
Zelenskyy told Morgan that Russia wants Trump to be "weak" and said with regard to the Russo-American diesel deal, "It's a pity that we are losing, we are losing [a] strong partner."
When asked whether he was "losing America," Zelenskyy answered in the affirmative.
"It's painful when President Trump chooses one side — not our side," said Zelenskyy. "We are okay that he's in the middle, but if you're in the middle, you have to stay in the middle, not on the wrong side. I think his advisers are wrong."
While the Ukrainian president insinuated that the U.S. is a fence-sitter, America has poured a fortune into Ukraine's defense and provided military and intelligence support to the beleaguered nation.
Ukraine Oversight, Special Inspector General for Operation Atlantic Resolve
Zelenskyy further suggested that Trump was being pushed away from the "right side of history."
When asked about Zelenskyy's remarks, a White House official told Blaze News that President Trump "wants this war settled so the senseless killing ends. The president and his team remain committed to continuing to play a constructive role in ending the war between Russia and Ukraine, and he remains optimistic that we’ll ultimately get a peace deal done."
"The United States continues to play a constructive role in speaking to both sides in working towards bringing the war to an end," continued the official. "We are the only country in the world that can play that role."
Neither the Department of War nor the State Department responded to Blaze News' request for comment.
On the theme of betrayal, Zelenskyy also alleged to Morgan that Kyiv had missed warnings from allies about imminent missile attacks because Starlink connectivity was deliberately restricted, "blocked of course by the SpaceX and of course by the United States."
"This decision will bring a lot of human losses," said Zelenskyy.
"Of course, people will die."
SpaceX did not respond to Blaze News' request for comment.
Musk emphasized on Thursday that "Starlink is a commercial service owned and controlled by SpaceX. Usage of Starlink is limited to civilian or defensive activities and cannot be used for offensive military action, as doing so would be inappropriate for a commercial company."
Musk noted further that "Starshield systems are owned and controlled by the US government. Any limits on speed or usage are decided by the US military and ultimately POTUS."
Mykhailo Fedorov, Ukraine's former minister of defense, noted on Wednesday that "Starlink connectivity at speeds of up to 160 km/h is being restored. Removing Starshield’s speed limit entirely is now critical for Ukraine’s defense. Thank you, @elonmusk . We hope for your continued support."
When asked whether he plans to step down, Zelenskyy — who has dissolved rival parties and consolidated Ukraine's media outlets — said, "Not, of course. This is my responsibility."
The Ukrainian president emphasized that his ouster would be a "decision, of course, of our people, not Trump, not Musk, not anyone."
Dmitry Peskov, a spokesman for the Kremlin, said that Zelenskyy has proven incapable of making the "very difficult decisions to stop this war," adding that "either Zelenskyy takes on that responsibility and demonstrates that political will, or he does not," reported the Kyiv Post.
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