Trump explodes over lack of progress on Ukraine talks: 'It's all bull----'

President Trump expressed disgust Tuesday over the lack of meaningful progress on bilateral talks between Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Russian President Vladimir Putin, using a sharp expletive to show his frustration.

At a meeting with his Cabinet, Mr. Trump was asked by a journalist about comments by a top Russian official who said Mr. Putin would not sign a peace deal with Mr. Zelenskyy because the Ukrainian leader is “illegitimate.” 

“Doesn’t matter what they say. Everybody’s posturing. It’s all bull——,” Mr. Trump said. 

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said in an interview with NBC’s “Meet the Press” that Mr. Putin views Mr. Zelenskyy as “illegitimate” and declared that Russia has an “agenda” that must be agreed upon before the two sides can sit down together. 

“There is no meeting planned,” Mr. Lavrov said, adding that a meeting can only happen if it reflects Mr. Putin’s agenda.

He then said that Mr. Putin’s agenda is “not ready at all.” 

Mr. Lavrov’s comments came about a week after Mr. Trump hailed his summit in Alaska with Mr. Putin as a success that would lead to a sit-down between the Russian president and his Ukrainian counterpart. Mr. Trump even boasted that both sides were making preparations for their encounter, predicting it would take place within two weeks. 

However, Vice President J.D. Vance pushed back on the idea that the Russians were dragging out the situation by refusing to set a meeting date with Mr. Zelenskyy. Speaking with NBC News, Mr. Vance said Russia had already made “significant concessions,” including recognizing that Ukraine would have territorial integrity after the war, and that they would not be able to install a puppet regime in Kyiv.

“Of course, they haven’t been completely there yet, or the war would be over,” Mr. Vance said. “But we’re engaging in this diplomatic process in good faith.”