Washington, D.C. — U.S. President Donald Trump has again placed blame on Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky for the war with Russia, a day after a deadly missile strike in the Ukrainian city of Sumy left 35 people dead and 117 injured.
Speaking from the White House on Monday, Trump said both Zelensky and Russian President Vladimir Putin were responsible for the “millions of people dead” in the ongoing conflict. “You don’t start a war against someone 20 times your size and then hope that people give you some missiles,” he stated.
The comments followed Russia’s Sunday missile assault on Sumy, which Ukrainian authorities say was the deadliest civilian attack this year.
Russian forces reportedly targeted the city again on Monday night, though no casualties were reported in that incident.
Moscow claimed its strike had killed 60 Ukrainian soldiers during a military gathering but provided no evidence. Ukrainian media reported that a medal ceremony for veterans had taken place in the city that day.
On Tuesday, Zelensky dismissed the regional governor of Sumy over the alleged hosting of the event.
Trump initially described the Sunday attack as “terrible,” suggesting Russia had “made a mistake,” without elaborating further.
He also criticized his predecessor, Joe Biden, for the war’s toll, asserting that “millions” had died, though casualty estimates remain in the hundreds of thousands.
“Millions of people are dead because of three people,” Trump said. “Let’s say Putin is number one, Biden is number two, and Zelensky is number three.”
Trump questioned Zelensky’s leadership, accusing him of “always looking to purchase missiles.” He added, “When you start a war, you have to know you can win.”
Despite Russia’s initial invasion of Ukraine in 2014—five years before Zelensky took office—and the full-scale invasion in 2022, Trump has consistently argued that the Ukrainian and U.S. presidents share responsibility for the conflict.
He said, “Biden could have stopped it, Zelensky could have stopped it, and Putin should have never started it. Everybody is to blame.”
Tensions between Trump and Zelensky have simmered in recent months, highlighted by a confrontational meeting at the White House in February. Trump reportedly urged Zelensky to begin peace negotiations with Moscow.
Trump has taken steps to strengthen ties with the Kremlin, including direct negotiations with Russian officials and a reported attempt to broker a ceasefire that excluded Kyiv.
He recently described a phone call with Putin as “great,” and the Russian president later sent him a portrait as a gift.
In February, the United States sided with Russia in voting against a United Nations resolution labeling Moscow as the aggressor in the Ukraine war.
Following the failed ceasefire talks, Trump said he was “very angry” with Putin but reiterated that he maintains a “good relationship” with the Russian leader.
Trump’s envoy, Steve Witkoff, who met with Putin in St. Petersburg last week, called the discussions “compelling” and said the Russian leader had proposed a permanent peace deal that would exclude Ukraine from NATO and secure Russian claims to five Ukrainian territories.
“There is a possibility to reshape the Russian-United States relationship through some very compelling commercial opportunities,” Witkoff told Fox News.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov confirmed that talks had taken place, calling them “positive,” but said no concrete agreement had emerged.
In an interview recorded before Sunday’s missile attack, President Zelensky urged Trump to visit Ukraine before pursuing negotiations with Russia.
“Please, before any kind of decisions, come to see the people—civilians, warriors, hospitals, churches, children destroyed or dead,” he told CBS’s 60 Minutes.
Sunday’s attack on Sumy involved two Iskander missiles fired minutes apart as civilians made their way to church for Palm Sunday.
A city bus was destroyed, and bodies were left scattered across the street. Ukrainian and U.S. officials believe cluster munitions may have been used.
On Tuesday, Ukraine’s military reported that it had struck a base belonging to the Russian rocket brigade responsible for the missile attack.
The war in Ukraine traces back to 2014, when Russia annexed Crimea following the ousting of a pro-Moscow government in Kyiv and began supporting separatist insurgents in eastern Ukraine.
