A top Kremlin spokesman told reporters on Thursday that Russian leaders “absolutely agree” with the approach President Donald Trump is taking to end Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, shortly after Trump excoriated Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in a social media post.
Dictator Vladimir Putin’s top spokesman Dmitry Peskov praised Trump for discussing “peace as soon as possible” and called the relationship with the Trump administration a significant improvement from attempts to communicate with former President Joe Biden. Biden notoriously lifted critical Trump-era sanctions on the Nord Stream 2 pipeline project, which would have been a massive revenue-generator for Russia, shortly before Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, emboldening Moscow to do so.
“They [the Trump administration] talk about the need to establish peace as soon as possible and do it through negotiations,” Peskov said during his daily briefing on Thursday, according to the Moscow Times. “We have also already mentioned that this position is more favorable to us than the previous administration and that here we absolutely agree with the American administration.”
Peskov also lamented what he indicated was an unsatisfactory diplomatic approach from the former Biden team, telling reporters Biden “never came up with any objectives to initiate a peaceful process” and spoke “about the war only,” according to the Russian news agency Tass.
The Kremlin spokesman did not use the “absolutely agree” phrasing directly about Trump’s tirade against Zelensky, but did take a moment to condemn Zelensky and refer to him as undiplomatic.
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“The rhetoric of Zelensky and many representatives of the Kiev regime, in general, leaves much to be desired,” Peskov claimed, according to a Tass translation. “Very often, representatives of the Ukrainian regime, especially in recent months, take utterly unacceptable liberties in their statements regarding the heads of other states. For many heads of state targeted by such remarks, this is absolutely unacceptable.”
Trump published an extensive note on his social media outlet Truth Social on Wednesday insulting Zelensky, shortly after the conclusion of talks between his top diplomat, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, and Russian officials in Saudi Arabia this week. Disparaging Zelensky as a “modestly successful comedian” – an insult borrowed from socialist Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva – Trump accused the Ukrainian president of swindling the United States out of $250 billion and being unable to end the war alone.
“A Dictator without Elections, Zelenskyy better move fast or he is not going to have a Country left,” Trump warned, claiming Zelensky “refuses to have Elections, is very low in Ukrainian Polls, and the only thing he was good at was playing Biden ‘like a fiddle.'”
The commentary did not note that Putin, who invaded Ukraine, has ruled Russia since 2000 as a result of fraudulent elections and the systematic elimination of any potential rivals. Zelensky, in contrast, won the 2019 presidential election in his country with no challenges to the integrity of that race. Ukraine was scheduled to hold elections in March 2024, but Ukrainian law prohibits holding elections under martial law, making it impossible for Zelensky to legally hold such a vote.
Peskov agreed with Trump’s comments on Zelensky’s popularity, calling it an “absolutely obvious trend.”
Zelensky has not directly responded to Trump’s remarks, instead emphasizing his engagement with other Americans. Zelensky notably highlighted a conversation with Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) on Wednesday, a staunch supporter of the Ukrainian war effort, and talks planned for Thursday with U.S. Special Representative for Ukraine and Russia Keith Kellogg.
“A lot of meetings and briefings—military command, intelligence, ministers—all in preparation for talks with President Trump’s representative, General Kellogg, who is already in Kyiv,” Zelensky wrote on social media on Wednesday night. “Our meeting is scheduled for tomorrow, and it is crucial that this discussion—and our overall cooperation with the U.S.—remains constructive.”
A lot of meetings and briefings—military command, intelligence, ministers—all in preparation for talks with President Trump’s representative, General Kellogg, who is already in Kyiv.
— Volodymyr Zelenskyy / Володимир Зеленський (@ZelenskyyUa) February 19, 2025
Our meeting is scheduled for tomorrow, and it is crucial that this discussion—and our overall… pic.twitter.com/vuWOrpABbf
Kellogg reportedly met with Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha on Thursday for a conversation the latter indicated was productive.
“I met with General Keith Kellogg to discuss ways toward a comprehensive, just, and lasting peace,” Sybiha said in a statement. “I affirmed Ukraine’s willingness to achieve peace through strength and our vision for the necessary steps. I also reiterated that the security of Ukraine and the transatlantic is indivisible.”
While keeping publicly civil, Zelensky has given some indications that he is frustrated with the Trump administration’s approach to the situation. The Ukrainian president canceled a scheduled visit, for example, to Saudi Arabia, apparently to avoid being near the U.S.-Russia negotiations.
“We were not invited to this Russian-American meeting in Saudi Arabia. It was a surprise for us. I don’t want any coincidences, so I’m not going to Saudi Arabia,” Zelensky said during a stop in Turkey.
Zelensky complained that the U.S.-Russia talks were a “surprise to us,” though conceding that “any country has a bilateral track with other country,” but pleaded, “you can discuss anything, but you can’t make a decision on how to end the war in Ukraine without Ukraine.”
Zelensky stated that he had rescheduled his visit to Saudi Arabia – one of the few countries that maintains close relations with both Russia and Ukraine – for March.
