Former U.S. President and Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump has accused Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy of rejecting opportunities to negotiate a peace deal with Moscow to end the war in Ukraine.
"We continue to give billions of dollars to a man who refuses to make a deal," Trump said at a campaign rally in North Carolina.
"So many dead people, any deal, even the worst deal, would have been better than what we have right now," Trump said.
"You have a country that has been obliterated, not possible to be rebuilt," he continued, referring to the situation in Ukraine. "It will take hundreds of years to rebuild it. There's not enough money to rebuild it if the whole world got together."
Trump criticized President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris for their ongoing support of Ukraine, indicating he would end U.S. aid to the country if re-elected in the U.S. presidential election on Nov. 5.
"They're not going to be satisfied until they send American kids," Trump claimed, "we're not going to have our soldiers die across the ocean," he said.
Biden was set to receive Zelenskyy at the White House on Thursday. The Ukrainian leader intends to pitch his "victory plan" for defeating Russia. He is also set to meet lawmakers in the U.S. Congress.
Zelenskyy had also planned to meet with Trump during his time in the U.S. However, news website Politico reported that such a meeting was now considered unlikely.
Biden was originally due to face Trump in the November presidential election but dropped his bid for a second term as his age and mental capabilities came under growing scrutiny. Harris will instead lead the Democratic ticket.
