President Donald Trump on Saturday called for Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to be removed from office after the Ukrainian armed forces carried out strikes on Russian diesel terminals. The moves were presented as an act of open defiance against the United States, as Trump had negotiated a deal to purchase Russian diesel just hours earlier.
“I think it’s time for Ukraine to get a new president,” Trump told reporters outside the White House. “I suggest they get a new leader who can make a deal. Because he could have made many deals and for some reason he never does.”
Trump added that “Zelensky could have settled this war many times, many many times, and he chooses not to. Very difficult. It’s a war that should have never been started.” He also stated that Ukraine had “lost 30% of your country and you’ve had over a million people killed.”
The president focused on Ukrainian attacks on Russian refining capacity. “We said, ‘you can do whatever you want to Russia, don’t hit the refineries’, because that’s a world problem that’s caused,” he said. “And he wants to make problems for the world, he wants to make problems for our farmers, our ranchers, with diesel fuel. … We have a world problem, and the problem is caused by the lack of refinereis for diesel fuel. So what does he do? He goes and hits the refineries.”
Trump went on to describe Zelensky’s actions as directly hostile towards the United States and its people. “And he’s not going to affect our farmers, he’s not going to affect our ranchers, and he’s not going to affect the rest of the world. So he better damn well stop.”
POLL: Should Trump Cut Off Aid To Countries That Side With Iran Over America?
BREAKING: President Trump just called on Zelensky to be OUSTED
"I suggest they get a new leader who can make a deal, because he could have made many deals that for some reason, he NEVER does."
"That's a war that should have never started. And I think it's time for Ukraine to… https://t.co/LN9H8612Vh pic.twitter.com/xvBSiURkPC
— Nick Sortor (@nicksortor) October 10, 2026
The statements came one day after Trump announced, following a phone call with Putin, that Russia would immediately supply more than 300,000 tons of diesel to the American and global marketplace, followed by 500,000 tons in November and an additional 1 million tons thereafter. A further 3 million tons would be delivered “within a short period of time,” subject to the condition of Russian diesel refineries.
The U.S .Treasury suspended sanctions on Russian diesel exports until April 7 as part of the arrangement. US diesel prices stood near $6.28 per gallon at the time of the deal, up from $3.68 a year earlier.
A U.S. official told Axios that Trump proceeded with the deal after Zelensky ignored roughly half a dozen requests to halt strikes on Russian oil refineries unilaterally. Zelensky had indicated willingness to pause such attacks if Russia stopped strikes on Ukrainian power plants.
Ukrainian negotiators were in Miami meeting with U.S. envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner when the deal was announced, though Zelensky later said the team had been used as a “smokescreen” and described the arrangement as “not fair and not honest” and a gift to Putin that would fund the war.
Ukraine continued its campaign of long-range drone strikes against Russian energy infrastructure. Shortly after the Friday announcement, fires were reported at an oil-loading terminal linked to the Novoshakhtinsk refinery in the Rostov-on-Don area and at a major facility in the Samara region.
A senior Ukrainian official told the Financial Times that Ukraine would continue the strikes, stating, “We will burn their refineries.”
RELATED: Middle East Exports Rebound As Iran’s Chokehold On Strait Of Hormuz Falters
Continue reading...
[ H/T Trending Politics ]
