U.S. President Donald Trump on Saturday called for Ukraine to "get a new leader" following Volodymyr Zelenskyy's criticism of Washington’s decision to ease Russian diesel sanctions, as Trump faces surging fuel prices ahead of midterm elections.
Trump, whose Republicans face dim prospects in next month's vote partly because of soaring energy costs, defended a deal allowing more Russian diesel onto global markets after saying Vladimir Putin strongly wanted to reach a settlement in Ukraine.
Trump accused Zelenskyy of blocking a deal with Moscow and ignoring instructions not to strike Russian refineries, while Kyiv and its European allies warned that easing pressure on Moscow would help fund the Kremlin's war.
Meanwhile, the latest Russian attacks across Ukraine killed at least 21 people, including children.
Trump announced Friday that he had spoken to Putin and agreed Russia would release large amounts of diesel into global markets.
Ukraine and its European allies expressed dismay, with Zelenskyy telling reporters Friday it was a "weak decision."
Asked about the criticism, Trump said Zelenskyy had disobeyed his orders not to strike Russian refineries and that the attacks risked worsening fuel shortages linked to the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran.
"He better damn well stop," Trump said.
"I suggest they get a new leader who can make a deal, because he could have made many deals that, for some reason, he never does," Trump said.
Trump later said Putin was interested in ending the war.
"Russia would like to make a deal ... but for whatever reason, Zelenskyy does not want to make a deal," he told reporters.
"President Putin would like to see a settlement, strongly."
The U.S. president also criticized Zelenskyy for not holding an election since Russia's 2022 invasion.
"I think he should have an election and he could have settled this thing many times," Trump said.
EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said lifting sanctions on Russian diesel would only help sustain Russia's war effort.
"This is not the time to ease pressure on Russia, and Europe won't," she wrote online.
U.K. Prime Minister Andy Burnham reiterated his "complete solidarity" with Zelenskyy in a call.
Downing Street said Burnham also pledged that Britain would "strengthen its sanctions on Russia."
Ukraine's Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiga also backed his president. "He has the support of the Ukrainian people, and they have the right to decide," he said in a post on X.
On Saturday, a Russian glide bomb attack on the southeastern city of Zaporizhzhia killed 20 people, including three children, according to Ukraine's state rescue service.
"Today, Russia expressed its thanks for the lifting of sanctions on diesel exports by dropping five glide bombs on residential buildings in Zaporizhzhia," Zelenskyy said in a post on X.
A Russian drone attack in the central Dnipropetrovsk region killed an 11-year-old boy, regional officials said.
Russian strikes also caused widespread power cuts in Kyiv.
Russia's Defense Ministry said it had hit a "data center" used by Ukraine's military.
The diesel deal was announced as U.S., Ukrainian and European officials met in Miami in a renewed bid to end the conflict.
Ukraine's delegation was headed home on Saturday, an aide to Zelenskyy said.
U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff said on X the talks involved "the E3, the European Commission, Ukraine and NATO."
He described the discussions as "constructive" and focused on ways to "de-escalate and conclude the war with Russia ahead of winter and advance efforts toward a durable and lasting peace."
The Kremlin said Saturday that Trump had conveyed his ideas about how to de-escalate the war to Putin during a phone call Friday.
Putin received the proposals "with understanding," the Kremlin said, without elaborating.
Russia, which launched its full-scale invasion in February 2022, now occupies roughly one-fifth of Ukrainian territory.
