U.S. President Donald Trump said Monday he does not expect Ukraine to win its war against Russia, though he acknowledged it remains a possibility.
During an appearance with Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese on Monday, Trump was asked about a statement he made about a month ago saying Ukraine, with the support of the European Union, might be able to reclaim its territories that have been occupied by Russia.
"They could still win it. I don't think they will, but they could still win it. I never said they would win it. I said they could win," Trump said in Washington.
"War is a very strange thing," he continued. "A lot of bad things happen. A lot of good things happen."
Over the weekend, Trump said the front line should be frozen to end the war, which would include dividing the eastern Donbas region.
The Financial Times, citing unnamed sources, reported that Trump had allegedly urged Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky during their meeting on Friday to give up the entire Donbas to stop the conflict.
Such a move would allow Russian President Vladimir Putin to achieve one of his key objectives in the war he started in February 2022.
When asked on Sunday whether he had told Zelensky he should cede the Donbas to Russia, Trump said: "No. We never discussed it."
But in an interview broadcast the same day by Fox News, Trump said Putin would "take something." Describing the areas of Ukraine that Russia has occupied as "property," he added: "I mean, they fought, and he has a lot of property."
Trump is preparing for a possible meeting with Putin in Budapest.
