US President Donald Trump issued a rare rebuke to Russian leader Vladimir Putin on Sunday, saying he was “not happy” with him after Moscow launched a record number of drones against Ukraine, killing 13 people across the country.
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Trump has expressed admiration for Putin in the past, but has in recent weeks shown growing frustration with Moscow’s position in truce negotiations with Kyiv, which are deadlocked.
“I’m not happy with what Putin is doing. He’s killing a lot of people, and I don’t know what the hell happened to Putin,” said Trump on the tarmac at Morristown airport in New Jersey before boarding Air Force One bound for Washington.
“I’ve known him a long time, always gotten along with him, but he’s sending rockets into cities and killing people, and I don’t like it at all.”
Russia’s attacks on Ukraine came as the two countries completed their biggest prisoner swap since Moscow launched its full-scale invasion in February 2022, with 1,000 captured soldiers and civilian prisoners sent back by each side.
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Those killed in the latest Russian strikes included two children, aged eight and 12, and a 17-year-old, killed in the northwestern region of Zhytomyr, officials said.
“Without truly strong pressure on the Russian leadership, this brutality cannot be stopped,” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said on social media.