A RAGING Donald Trump has slammed Vladimir Putin for talking “bull****” about the Ukraine war and making “meaningless” promises.
The savage attack comes as Trump vowed to send more weapons to Ukraine as he appears to be growing increasingly frustrated with the Russian tyrant.
East2WestDozens were injured in Kyiv following a massive ballistic missile and drone attack launched by Russia last week[/caption]
APFires broke out in at least 13 locations across five districts in Kyiv after the attack[/caption]
SplashUS President Donald Trump has slammed Putin for talking ‘bull****’[/caption]
“We get a lot of bull**** thrown at us by Putin, if you want to know the truth,” Trump told reporters during a televised cabinet meeting at the White House.
“He’s very nice all the time, but it turns out to be meaningless.”
Trump reiterated that he was “very unhappy” with Putin since their phone call last week made no progress on the Ukraine peace deal – something the US president has pushed for since returning to power.
But Putin has snubbed peace and is instead steadily increasing his overnight bombing raids – which could soon hit 1,000 a day.
Trump’s criticism of Putin came a day after he said he would send more weapons to Ukraine – a sweeping reversal of Washington’s announcement last week that it was halting some arms shipments.
The White House confirmed on July 1 that shipments of certain air defence missiles and other precision bombs to Ukraine had been stopped because of concerns about dwindling weapons stockpiles.
However, Trump reversed the decision, adding: “We’re going to send some more weapons.
“We have to. They have to be able to defend themselves.They’re getting hit very hard now.”
“We’re going to have to send more weapons, defensive weapons, primarily.”
Moscow had no immediate reaction to Trump’s strongly worded comments about Putin, but the Kremlin said that sending arms to Ukraine only serves to prolong the conflict.
“It is obvious of course that these actions probably do not align with attempts to promote a peaceful resolution,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov was quoted by Russian news agencies as saying in a briefing.
Ukrainian officials have been left scrambling for clarity following the contradictory announcements from Washington.
Any pause in weapons deliveries poses a serious challenge for Kyiv, which is contending with some of Russia’s largest missile and drone attacks of the war.
Trump promised to immediately send 10 MIM-104 Patriot surface-to-air missile (SAM) systems – which are used to stop incoming missiles – to Ukraine, according to Axios.
The rocket systems were successfully used a fortnight ago when they shot down every single missile that Iran fired at a US airbase in Qatar.
More weapons that Kyiv could receive in the coming days include precision-guided GMLRS missiles and thousands of high-explosive Howitzer rounds.
Trump also urged Pentagon Chief Pete Hegseth to push defence contractors to increase production of armaments.
“We have to step them up, Pete, and let them make it at a much higher rate,” he said.
“Putin is not treating human beings right. He’s killing too many people. So we’re sending some defensive weapons and I’ve approved that,” Trump added.
Russian President Vladimir Putin looks on during a meeting with his new transport minister
Asked about his interest in a bill proposed by the Senate for further sanctions on Russia, Trump said: “I’m looking at it very strongly.”
Senator Lindsey Graham said last week that Trump has given him the go-ahead to push forward with a bill he’s co-sponsoring that calls, in part, for a 500 per cent tariff on goods imported from countries that continue to buy Russian oil.
Since America joined the Israeli campaign of bombing Iran – there has been a subtle shift in Moscow’s attitude towards peace in Ukraine.
Putin, who himself proposed direct talks with Kyiv to end the war a few weeks ago, has now suggested that diplomacy will not help Moscow achieve its war goals.
He has instead increased the intensity of his attacks – hammering Ukraine with almost daily drones and ballistic missile blitzes.
Russia set a new record on Sunday with 539 drones and 11 missiles that wounded 26 people in Kyiv.
On Monday, bombs killed at least 11 civilians and injured more than 80 others, including seven children in horror strikes.
Ukraine needs a number of different air defence systems due to the different kinds of bombs Russia fires at it.
Trump and Zelensky last held a call on July 4, just a week after they met in The Hague for the Nato conference.
Zelensky described the call as the “best one so far”.
MORE TO COME
Kyiv has ramped up its defences as it seeks to thwart Vladimir Putin’s final killer summer offensive, which military analysts say could start as early as July.
Some 125,000 Russian soldiers are reportedly massing along the Sumy and Kharkiv frontiers, according to Ukraine’s military intelligence.
Two weeks ago, Ukraine’s fierce resistance forced Russian troops to stop in the Sumy region’s border area, Kyiv’s military Commander-in-Chief Oleksandr Syrsky revealed.
The military boss said that the Ukrainian armed forces managed to tie down a 50,000-strong force and stabilise the frontlines “as of this week”.
Ukrainians have now tasked a special defence group to strengthen fortifications near the frontlines, build anti-drone corridors and “kill zones”
Moscow said Monday that its forces captured their first village in Ukraine’s central Dnipropetrovsk region after advancing towards it for months.
The village of Dachne is in an important industrial mining territory that has come under mounting Russian air attacks.
Last month, Moscow said its forces had crossed the border into the Dnipropetrovsk region for the first time in its campaign.
Ukraine has so far denied any Russian foothold in Dnipropetrovsk. Ukraine’s military said earlier Monday its forces “repelled” attacks in Dnipropetrovsk, including “in the vicinity” of Dachne.
Dnipropetrovsk is not one of the five Ukrainian regions — Donetsk, Kherson, Lugansk, Zaporizhzhia and Crimea — that Moscow has publicly claimed as Russian territory.
Describing the situation in Dnipropetrovsk as “difficult” for Kyiv’s forces, Ukrainian military expert Oleksiy Kopytko said Russia hopes to create some kind of buffer zone in the region.
“Our troops are holding their ground quite steadily,” he added.