‘Emotions are running high’ Putin has yet to respond to Trump calling him ‘crazy,’ but Kremlin officials have plenty to say
Amid massive Russian strikes on Ukraine and stalled peace negotiations, U.S. President Donald Trump has begun to sharply criticize Vladimir Putin, calling the Russian leader “CRAZY,” accusing him of “needlessly killing a lot of people,” and warning that he is “playing with fire.” Putin has yet to respond publicly, but Russian officials have called Trump’s remarks an emotional outburst, and one has gone so far as to threaten him with World War III. Here’s a rundown of the escalation.
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U.S. President Donald Trump: “I’ve always had a very good relationship with Vladimir Putin of Russia, but something has happened to him. He has gone absolutely CRAZY! He is needlessly killing a lot of people, and I’m not just talking about soldiers. Missiles and drones are being shot into Cities in Ukraine, for no reason whatsoever. I’ve always said that he wants ALL of Ukraine, not just a piece of it, and maybe that’s proving to be right, but if he does, it will lead to the downfall of Russia!”
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Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov: “The launch of the negotiations process, which the American side worked very hard to make happen, is a major achievement. We are truly grateful to the Americans and personally to President Trump. […] At the same time, this is a very sensitive moment, and emotions are running high for everyone, which explains some of the reactions. We are closely monitoring all reactions.”
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Trump: “What Vladimir Putin doesn’t realize is that if it weren’t for me, lots of really bad things would have already happened to Russia, and I mean REALLY BAD. He’s playing with fire!”
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Russian Security Council Deputy Chairman Dmitry Medvedev: “Regarding Trump's words about Putin ‘playing with fire’ and ‘really bad things’ happening to Russia. I only know of one REALLY BAD thing — WWIII. I hope Trump understands this!”
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U.S. special envoy for Ukraine and Russia Keith Kellogg: “Stoking fears of WW III is an unfortunate, reckless comment by [Dmitry Medvedev] and unfitting of a world power. President Trump is working to stop this war and end the killing. We await receipt of RU Memorandum (Term Sheet) that you promised a week ago. Cease fire now.”
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Peskov: “I wouldn’t comment on [Trump’s remark that Putin is ‘playing with fire’]. It’s clear that the American side — and President Trump personally — has been making significant efforts toward a peaceful resolution and wants to see one as soon as possible. And once again, we express our gratitude to President Trump for his mediation efforts.
That said, there are a great many nuances that still need to be discussed — nuances that cannot be sacrificed, and that neither side will agree to sacrifice, given their respective national interests. Just as the United States has its national interests, so does Russia — and for us, they come above all else.”
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Russian presidential aide Yuri Ushakov: “Trump says a lot of things. We track it all, but in many cases we come to the conclusion that he isn’t being fully informed about what’s actually happening in the context of the Russia–Ukraine confrontation.
In particular, he’s not being told about the increasingly frequent, large-scale terrorist attacks Ukraine is carrying out against peaceful Russian cities. What Trump hears about are only our retaliatory actions — and even then, he doesn’t fully understand that we are striking exclusively military infrastructure and defense industry targets.”
