Trump says 'very angry, pissed off' with Putin: NBC
(FILES) This combination of pictures created on 7 November 2024 shows former US President and Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump at a Fox News Town Hall in Cumming, Georgia, on 15 October 2024, and Russia's President Vladimir Putin speaking during the BRICS summit in Kazan on 24 October 2024. Trump has spoken to Putin and urged him not to escalate the war in Ukraine, the Washington Post reported on 10 November 2024. Trump spoke with Putin from his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida on 7 November, just days after his election victory over Democratic rival Kamala Harris, the report said.
Alexander NEMENOV, Elijah Nouvelage / AFP
US President Donald Trump said Sunday he was "very angry, pissed off" with Russian leader Vladimir Putin, NBC reported, marking a sharp change of tone as Washington seeks to end the war in Ukraine.
NBC's Kristen Welker said Trump had called her to express his anger over Putin questioning Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky's future as a leader — something that Trump himself has done.
Welker, on her NBC show Meet The Press on Sunday, quoted directly from an early-morning telephone conversation with the president.
Trump said that "if Russia and I are unable to make a deal on stopping the bloodshed in Ukraine, and if I think it was Russia's fault" then he would impose "secondary tariffs on all oil coming out of Russia."
Welker said Trump told her "I was very angry, pissed off" when Putin started making comments about Zelensky's credibility and talking about new leadership in Ukraine.
Trump has been pushing for a speedy end to the more than three-year war since taking office, but his administration has failed to reach a breakthrough despite talks with both sides.
Putin rejected a joint US-Ukrainian plan for a 30-day ceasefire, and on Friday suggested Zelensky be removed from office as part of the peace process, further toughening Moscow's negotiating position and angering Kyiv.