'Everything Putin says is manipulation': Zelenskyy urges Trump to maintain caution while dealing with Russia

As the Russia-Ukraine war continues to rage on, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that everything his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin says is "manipulation". The Ukrainian leader maintained that he can "play" with US President Donald Trump's emotions to get sanctions against Russia lifted.

"Everything Putin says is manipulation. It is all about emotions. And today there is a battle for Trump's emotions. If he feels positive, he may lift some sanctions on Russia," the Ukrainian leader told TCH. "If he understands that Putin does not want to end the war, he will return to stronger actions," he added.

The remarks from the Ukrainian leader came right after he confirmed his readiness to negotiate with Putin, calling the latter's statements about peace a "lie". According to Ukrainian news outlet UNN, Zelenskyy reiterated that Ukraine never rejects the diplomatic path, but negotiations are possible only if Ukraine has a strong position and real pressure is applied to Russia.

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'Putin wants everything to burn'

The Ukrainian leader had harsh words for his Russian counterpart. "Putin wants everything to burn for us, and he is insane — partners feel this. Ukraine is ready to negotiate with him, despite this. But Europe must fully engage so that we have a strong position," he said.

Zelenskyy emphasised that Ukraine's partners understand the true intentions of the Russian leadership. "Putin does not want to stop. And all his talk about wanting peace is a lie. All partners, all Europeans feel this. But everyone is confident that together we will stop him. The key is together, and we will stop him," he said.

The Ukrainian president urged the war-torn nation's European allies to work more actively in three key areas: Strengthening sanctions against Russia, confiscating Russian assets, and stable funding for Ukraine. He said that Putin is afraid of the return of the Russian army home, as ending the war without victory could create internal risks for him.

"Putin is terrified of his army returning home. That is why he is so afraid of the end of the war without victory, but he will not have victory," he said. Zelenskyy also warned that without concrete security guarantees, Russia could resort to aggression again, and next time other countries could be under attack.

Furthermore, he emphasised that Ukraine is ready for diplomacy, but not for imitating a peace process on the Kremlin's terms. According to him, Russia can only be stopped through joint actions by Ukraine, Europe, and other partners.