Trump: 'Ukraine needs a new leader, Zelensky wants to create problems for the world'

"The time has come for Ukraine to have a new president." This was said by Donald Trump. "I suggest that Ukraine find a new leader capable of reaching a deal," he emphasized. Volodymyr Zelensky could have ended this war on many occasions, he wants to create problems for the world and for farmers, the US president added. 'Today Russia expressed its gratitude for the lifting of sanctions on diesel exports by launching five guided bombs on residential buildings in Zaporizhzhia,' Ukrainian President Zelensky wrote on X the day after the agreement between Trump and Putin. 'Any easing of pressure is interpreted as a green light to continue dropping bombs on cities,' he added. The death toll has meanwhile risen to at least 15 people, including three children, Ukrainska Pravda reports. The Kremlin calls some of the proposals put forward by the US on de-escalation 'sensible'. The United States has threatened to stop sharing intelligence information with Ukraine if it does not stop hitting Russian oil refineries. This is reported by the Financial Times citing sources, according to whom Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner raised the possibility during their meeting with Ukrainian and European negotiators in Miami, following the criticism voiced by Zelensky after the American decision to lift sanctions on Russian diesel. A meeting that was supposed to last two days but was concluded prematurely by decision of the Ukrainian team. "Russian attacks have killed more than 80 Ukrainian civilians in two days. In addition, Russia has intensified its hybrid attacks against Europe, targeting both EU member states and NATO allies. The suspension of sanctions on Russian diesel guarantees Moscow greater revenues to finance the war. This is not the time to ease pressure on Russia, and Europe will not do so. On Monday, EU foreign ministers intend to approve the broadest sanctions listing package against the Russian war machine since the beginning of the war." This was declared on social media by EU High Representative Kaja Kallas. Vladimir Putin showed great understanding, during the phone call with Donald Trump, regarding some proposals put forward by the US for the de-escalation of the conflict in Ukraine. This was made known by the Kremlin. "During the conversation, the Russian president showed himself to be very understanding of some proposals from the American side regarding de-escalation measures," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters, as cited by Interfax. Most of the phone call between Putin and Trump, which took place Friday evening at the latter's initiative, focused on resolving the Ukrainian crisis, he added. Meanwhile, Axios reports, citing sources, that Trump decided to conclude the deal with Russia on diesel after Volodymyr Zelensky ignored repeated American requests to stop the attacks on Russian oil refineries. "Zelensky is misjudging the situation. By continuing to hit the refineries, he is compromising" the trust and goodwill obtained from Trump over the past six months, an American official explained. The president wanted Ukraine to unilaterally stop the attacks on the refineries because they were driving up energy prices in the United States. "The EU is reducing its dependence on Russian fossil fuels and will continue to do so with determination." This was said by a European Commission spokesperson contacted by ANSA about the agreement announced yesterday by Trump to allow Russian diesel exports. "Europe knows all too well the hidden costs associated with excessive dependence on Russian hydrocarbons. And Europe does not want to fuel Russia's war against Ukraine. We continue to believe that a ceasefire is necessary to protect global food supplies and energy infrastructure in Ukraine and Russia." During the eight hours of talks yesterday in Miami with the Ukrainian negotiators, Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner had warned them of the phone call between Trump and Putin and of the removal of sanctions on Russian diesel because Kyiv had ignored his requests. According to a Ukrainian source, Trump's envoys also threatened to take away from Ukraine the intelligence needed to act if it continues to ignore the president's requests. The Americans, however, deny this account and emphasize that Witkoff and Kushner merely explained that the attacks were causing problems in the United States. Until the agreement with Russia, the negotiations in Miami had gone well. They had focused on security guarantees and new proposals for territorial solutions had been presented. Also according to Axios, Witkoff and Kushner are considering going to Moscow and Kyiv next week to discuss a peace proposal. According to the sources, it is not clear how the tensions over the diesel agreement with Russia might affect their decisions. Reproduction reserved © Copyright ANSA