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Ties between the US and Ukraine took a turn for the worse when Trump called Zelenskyy a “dictator without elections” after the latter disapporved of US-Russia talks where Kyiv was not invited.
Musk intensified his attack on Zelenskyy, saying he was “despised” by his people. (Image: AP)
Tech billionaire Elon Musk attacked Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Thursday, saying he was “despised” by Ukrainians and that US President Donald Trump made the correct decision by leaving him out of the talks with Russia aimed at ending the three-year war.
The comments by the tech tycoon, who is leading Trump’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) to reduce excessive federal spending, came as tensions between the US and Ukraine increased with the White House telling Zelenskyy to stop “insults” against Trump and sign a minerals deal with Washington.
Musk launched into a tirade against Zelenskyy on his X social network, accusing him without evidence of running a “massive graft machine feeding off the dead bodies of Ukrainian soldiers.”
“If Zelenskyy was actually loved by the people of Ukraine, he would hold an election. He knows he would lose in a landslide, despite having seized control of ALL Ukrainian media, so he cancelled the election,” he said, backing Trump’s demand that Ukraine should hold elections.
Unfortunately, @CommunityNotes is increasingly being gamed by governments & legacy media.Working to fix this …
It should be utterly obvious that a Zelensky-controlled poll about his OWN approval is not credible!!
If Zelensky was actually loved by the people of Ukraine, he… https://t.co/gy0NjtPwiq
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) February 20, 2025
“In reality, he is despised by the people of Ukraine, which is why he has refused to hold an election. I challenge Zelenskyy to hold an election and refute this. He will not,” Musk added.
However, the Tesla and SpaceX boss struck a calmer tone at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) later Thursday, saying that Trump was “so pragmatic” about the Ukraine war. “The president has a lot of empathy. He really cares,” he said.
Zelenskyy was elected in 2019 for a five-year term but Ukraine has postponed elections due to martial law imposed following Russia’s 2022 invasion of its pro-Western neighbour.
ALSO READ: ‘He Did This While Kids Were Dying’: Elon Musk Slams Zelenskyy Over His Old Vogue Shoot
US-Ukraine Relations Strained
Earlier, ties between the US and Ukraine took a turn for the worse when Trump called Zelenskyy a “dictator without elections”, following his dissatisfaction to a meeting between the US and Russian officials in Saudi Arabia seeking a possible settlement to the Ukraine conflict, where Kyiv was not invited.
“A Dictator without Elections, Zelenskyy better move fast or he is not going to have a Country left,” Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform of the Ukrainian leader. Reacting to Trump’s remarks that also mentioned his popularity rating, Zelenskyy said that the US President was living in a Russian “disinformation” bubble.
The Ukrainian leader also accused Washington of helping end Russian President Vladimir Putin’s international isolation, and said he wanted security guarantees from Kyiv’s allies that could enable the war to end this year.
Trump’s National Security Advisor Mike Waltz separately urged Zelenskyy to cool his criticism of Trump amid a growing war of words with the US president.
“Some of the rhetoric coming out of Kyiv, frankly, and insults to President Trump were unacceptable,” Waltz told a briefing at the White House to mark Trump’s first month in office.
Waltz Tells Ukraine To ‘Tone It Down’
Zelenskyy has complained at being left out of US talks with Russia aimed at ending the war, following Trump’s shock phone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin last week.
He has also rejected a deal that would give the US access to vast amounts of Ukrainian natural resources as the new president insists on getting a return on American aid.
Waltz pushed Ukraine to accept the minerals deal, saying it was a “historic opportunity… for America to co-invest with Ukraine in their minerals.”
Trump was “focused on the fighting and moving forward, and we could argue all day long about what’s happened in the past,” Waltz said.
Earlier Waltz had told Fox News that the Ukrainians “need to tone it down and take a hard look and sign that deal.”
He also denied that Ukraine has been cut out of Trump’s talks with Russia over ending the war, insisting that there was “plenty of engagement and dialogue” with Kyiv as well as European allies.
“This is a common sense plan. They may not like it but we’re going to drive it forward and everybody will stop squawking when the fighting ends,” Waltz said.
French President Emmanuel Macron will visit the White House on Monday followed by British Prime Minister Keir Starmer on Thursday, Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt told the briefing. Both leaders have suggested sending troops to Ukraine as peacekeepers in the event of a deal.
(with AFP inputs)
- Location :
Washington D.C., United States of America (USA)
