Volodymyr Zelenskyy has warned Donald Trump that Vladimir Putin is “bluffing” when he says he wants to end the war in Ukraine.
The Ukrianian president told his American counterpart to be on his guard when he meets the Russian leader in Alaska on Friday.
Zelesnkyy took part in a virtual meeting with European leaders, including Keir Starmer, and Trump on Wednesday afternoon.
Speaking at a press conference in Berlin alongside German chancellor Friedrich Merz afterwards, Zelenskyy said: “I told President Trump and all our European allies Putin is bluffing. He is trying to push before the Alaska meeting across all directions along the frontline. Russia wants to occupy the whole of Ukraine.”
He added: “I said to our European friends and President Trump that Putin definitely does not want peace, he wants to occupy Ukraine.”
He also said that Putin is “bluffing” when he claims that economic sanctions placed on Russia as a result of its illegal invasion of Ukraine in 2022 do not work.
“Sanctions are hitting the Russian war economy hard,” he said.
Zelenskyy: "I told President Trump and all our European allies that Putin is bluffing. He's trying to push before the Alaska meeting on all directions of the front. Russia wants to occupy the whole of Ukraine. This is his wish … he does not want peace." pic.twitter.com/hsRxtlCEFV
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) August 13, 2025
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