“I’m not happy, I’m not happy about the whole situation,” Trump told reporters after landing at Joint Base Andrews following his trip to see the U.S. Open men’s tennis final in New York.
Trump insisted that no one had been tougher than he on Russian and Putin, and he defended his efforts to end the war, saying those efforts would continue
“I’m not thrilled with what’s happening,” Trump continued. “I believe we’re going to get it settled. I’m not happy with anything having to do with that war.”
Russia’s attack on Ukraine on Sunday was also notable because Moscow hit a Ukrainian government building for the first time since the war began.
The attack did not suggest any signs of a slowdown by Putin and Moscow, even after Trump has increasingly shown his frustration.
Trump in his remarks on Sunday, however, was careful not to single out Russia or Putin for criticism.
When a reporter asked Trump what he thought the biggest obstacle was to getting a peace deal, Trump did not mention the Russian leader or Moscow.
“Well we’re going to see. We have some very interesting discussions,” he said, noting that European leaders would be coming to Washington this week.
Trump in recent weeks has expressed growing exasperation with Putin. He repeated Sunday that he thought the Russia-Ukraine war would have been the easiest conflict to resolve upon his return to office. It has turned out to be among the most intractable.
