Republicans Fact-Check Trump’s Claim That Ukraine Started War With Russia: ‘Factually Wrong’
Some GOP lawmakers distanced themselves from Trump's statements calling Zelensky a "dictator without elections" and blaming Ukraine for the war
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Read MoreRepublicans Fact-Check Trump’s Claim That Ukraine Started War With Russia: ‘Factually Wrong’
Fact-check: Did Ukraine start its war with Russia, as Trump claims?
"I think I have the power to end this war, and I think it's going very well," Trump said, answering reporters' questions on February 18 at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida. "But today I heard [from Ukraine], 'Oh well, we weren't invited.' Well, you've been there for three years. You should have ended it three years - you should have never started it, you could have made a deal."
This clashes with the evidence that Russia sent a large invasion force into Ukraine in February 2022.
Trump’s claims on Russia’s war with Ukraine, fact-checked
- Claim: Zelenskyy is a 'dictator without elections'
- Claim: The U.S. has spent $350 billion on the war in Ukraine
- Claim: The U.S. has spent $200 billion more than Europe; Europe's money is guaranteed
- Claim: Zelenskyy has a 4% approval rating
- Claim: Ukraine started the war with Russia
Fact check: Trump’s ‘dictator’ attacks on Zelensky | The Straits Times
- A 'dictator without elections'
- Who started the war?
- US aid to Ukraine
- Europe's aid to Ukraine
- 'Millions' of dead?
Zelenskyy was sleeping: Trump claims Treasure Secretary Bessent was treated rudely during his last week’s visit to Kyiv | European Pravda
As reported before, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent arrived in Kyiv on 12 February to discuss economic partnership with Ukraine and met with Zelenskyy during his visit.
PolitiFact | Fact-checking President Donald Trump’s attacks on Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy
Claim: Zelenskyy started the war in Ukraine with Russia.
Claim: Zelenskyy is a dictator.
Claim: Zelenskyy has a 4% approval rating.
Claim: The U.S. spent $350 billion to help Ukraine.
Claim: Zelenskyy said he doesn't know where half of the money the U.S. has given Ukraine went.
Claim: Zelenskyy was "sleeping and unavailable" to meet Treasury Secretary Scott Bessett during a Feb. 12 Kyiv visit.
Fact Check: Trump’s ‘Dictator’ Attacks On Zelensky – Barron’s
Attacks by US President Donald Trump on Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky have deepened a crisis between the two leaders as Ukraine's war with Russia approaches its third anniversary.
AFP fact checked some of the statements by the US leader.
Trump’s flurry of false claims about Ukraine – The Washington Post
In remarks and social media posts, the president echoed Russian talking points. [...]
Here’s an assessment of Trump’s misleading statements on Ukraine in recent days.
How much U.S. aid went to Ukraine? Detangling Trump, Zelensky’s claims. – The Washington Post
In his remarks, Zelensky went on to say that he knew a large part of U.S. aid came not in direct funds but in the forms of weapons, training, humanitarian programs and in other areas. He said: “I don’t know where all this money is.”
Trump appeared to take the comment as an admission that the money was lost. But while Zelensky said he did not know exactly how it was spent, his understanding appeared to comport with U.S. accounting that shows a large share went to activities carried out to respond to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, including within the United States.
Chart: Trump’s Claim That Zelensky Has 4% Support Is Far Off | Statista
Data released by the Kyiv International Institute of Sociology (KIIS) shows that while Zelensky's support base has decreased since early 2022, when Russia invaded Ukraine, it is still far higher than Trump's claim of four percent. In a poll conducted between February 4-9, 57 percent of adults said they trusted Zelensky, while 37 percent of respondents said that they do not and six percent said it was hard to say.