Trump made the remarks during a White House meeting with Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele on April 14. The U.S. leader was asked whether he’d sell Kyiv weapons to help defend against Moscow. In response, he suggested that Zelenskyy “started” the Russo–Ukrainian war.
“He’s always looking to purchase missiles,” said Trump.
“Listen, when you start a war, you got to know you can win a war. You don't start a war against somebody that's 20 times your size and then hope that people give you some missiles.”
He then reiterated his usual stance, saying that Russian dictator Vladimir Putin would not have launched the 2022 invasion if Trump was in office at that time.
Earlier, Zelenskyy told CBS News that Ukraine is prepared to purchase 10 Patriot air defense systems from the United States for $15 billion. He also said he had asked the Trump administration for licenses to manufacture interceptor missiles for Patriots.