President Donald Trump bashed both Russia and Ukraine from the Oval Office on Friday, saying that they're not moving forward with negotiations for ending the war.
Trump told reporters who were allowed to be in the room that he nonetheless found it easier to work with Russia than Ukraine despite the fact that Russia has shown no inclination so far to let up in its bombing campaign against its neighboring country.
"I think we're doing very well with Russia," said Trump. "But right now they're bombing the hell out of Ukraine. I'm finding it more difficult, frankly, to deal with Ukraine. And they don't have the cards ... in terms of getting a final settlement, it may be easier dealing with Russia."
CNN anchor Jim Sciutto called the statement false.
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"This is not true," he wrote on X. "Ukrainian drone operations are formidable to the point that the U.S. military is learning from them. Ukraine, without a navy of its own, has effectively defeated the Russian Black Sea fleet. Moreover, it is rich to claim Ukraine has no cards when Trump has deliberately removed many of them with his aid and intel suspension."
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky was thrown out of the White House last week after being berated in the Oval Office for not being grateful enough to the United States for its assistance in defending itself against Russia.
Trump lashed out telling Zelensky, "Don't tell us how to feel! ...You're in no position to dictate what we're going to feel!"
The meeting was supposed to be part of a deal to split rare earth minerals between the U.S. and Ukraine. This week, despite the disagreements, Vice President J.D. Vance has been pressing for the deal to happen despite the Oval Office drama, CBS News reported.
However, Radio France Internationale reported on Monday that Zelensky attended a meeting with the European Union the following day and began negotiations with France and the E.U. over a mineral deal.