From Praise to Calls to Step Down: Why Trump Turned on Zelensky

Donald Trump’s shift from praising Volodymyr Zelensky’s courage to calling for him to step down reflects a deepening dispute over peace negotiations and the terms for ending the war in Ukraine.

At the heart of the rift is US pressure on Kyiv to make concessions to Moscow. The disagreement has widened beyond how talks should proceed to what Ukraine should be prepared to accept in a settlement.

A clash over an agreement concerning Russian diesel supplies has added another point of friction. The issue has further strained relations already tested by competing positions on ending the fighting.

Trump’s increasingly confrontational stance toward Zelensky shows how those policy differences have become a dispute over the Ukrainian leader himself. The reversal underscores the growing pressure on Kyiv as it faces demands for concessions while negotiating the conditions for peace.