Zelenskiy Says Trump Administration Ignored Russia-Iran Cooperation

Zelenskiy Questions Trump’s Trust in Putin

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy criticized the US for ignoring what he described as evidence of Russian support for Iran.

Zelenskiy said in a podcast interview that Iran had Russian backing when it attacked US military bases in the Middle East, the Guardian reported on June 8. Information on US bases and key energy infrastructure in the region, gathered by Russian military satellites, was passed to Iran, he said.

The Trump administration knew about cooperation between Russia and Iran and did little in response, Zelenskiy said. He argued that the stance reflected the administration’s trust in Russian President Vladimir Putin.

He also criticized envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, saying they spend too much time with Putin and senior Russian officials while taking part in talks on ending the war in Ukraine. Neither Witkoff nor Kushner has visited Ukraine, while both traveled to Moscow five times last year.

Zelenskiy also spoke about negotiations to end the war in Ukraine. Even if Russia secures the eastern Donbas region, it will not stop and could seek more territory later, he said. Russia is demanding all of Donbas, while Ukraine maintains that there can be no compromise on sovereignty.

Zelenskiy also raised the possibility of a US withdrawal from the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, or NATO. He said European countries need to maximize their strength and argued that Europe cannot build a military force comparable to Russia’s without Ukraine and Turkey.

Lee Su, Hankyung.com reporter 2su@hankyung.com