As President-elect Donald Trump begins work on assembling his Cabinet, a process that will lay the foundation for his administration’s agenda, there's no better time to recall some of his statements on the Ukraine crisis.
“This is a war that never should have started […] the money that we’re spending on this war, and we shouldn’t be spending, it should have never happened… I will have that war settled between Putin and Zelensky as president-elect before I take office on January 20. I’ll have that war settled,” Trump said during his presidential debate with Biden in June 2024.
Here's a look at some of Trump's campaign statements:
Peace Deal in 24 Hours
"I will say this […] I would have a peace deal negotiated within 24 hours, you could make a peace deal for both right now, 24 hours, that deal is waiting to be done," Trump said at a rally in January 2023.
"Before I even arrive at the Oval Office, shortly after we win the presidency… I will have the horrible war between Russia and Ukraine settled," Trump touted during a rally in Philadelphia in June 2024.
Trump claimed during an interview with Fox News in early March that if he had still been president, the Ukraine crisis would not have spiraled, as he “could have negotiated."
"At worst, I could've made a deal to take over something, there are certain areas [in Ukraine] that are Russian-speaking areas, frankly, but you could've worked a deal."
At a North Carolina rally in September 2024, Trump described Ukraine as “demolished,” and argued that “Any deal – the worst deal – would’ve been better than what we have now… If they made a bad deal, it would’ve been much better.”
First Two Calls to Putin, Zelensky
“You have Ukraine and Russia, and that's… out of control. I met with President Zelensky, and I got along very well with President Putin," Trump said in Milwaukee in October. "I think I would like to be able to solve, well… if I get elected, I'm going to work on that immediately. It's going to be my first two phone calls."
Trump argued he would “get people in a room, knock heads and get it done… That would mean saying things to Putin and saying things to Zelensky that they’re not going to want to hear, and getting them into a room, and getting it done.”
Guaranteed ‘No’ to US Boots
Trump vowed to not put US troops on the ground in Ukraine if he returns to the White House during an interview on the podcast All-In in June 2024. “I would guarantee it. I wouldn't do it. No.” He added that “for 20 years, I heard that NATO, if Ukraine goes into NATO, it's a real problem for Russia. I've heard that for a long time. And I think that's really why this war started.”
"We're giving away so much equipment, we don't have ammunition for ourselves right now," Trump said during CNN's town hall event in May 2023.
Trump slammed US aid to Ukraine at a campaign rally in Detroit on June 15, 2024, saying he would "have that [US aid to Ukraine] settled prior to taking the White House as president-elect."