U.S. President Donald Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky's summit ended in failure, while Russia has launched coordinated pressure against Ukraine. Russian President Vladimir Putin has refrained from making public statements, but those around him are uniformly criticizing President Zelensky.
According to the British daily Guardian on the 1st (local time), Dmitry Medvedev, the deputy chairman of the Russian Security Council and a close aide to President Putin, referred to President Zelensky as a "clown" on social media and described the White House summit with President Trump as "a merciless reprimand."
He claimed, "President Trump told the truth in front of the clown that he is 'playing with the potential of a third world war,'" adding, "This is not enough. Military support (for Ukraine) must be stopped."
Maria Zakharova, the Spokesperson for the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, heightened the rhetoric by likening President Zelensky to "garbage." He stated on Telegram, "It is miraculous endurance that President Trump and Vice President J.D. Vance did not hit that garbage of a human."
A blogger, identified as "Raiba," who maintains close ties with the Russian Ministry of National Defense, also commented on this summit, saying it revealed the ungrateful, arrogant, shameless, and blind nature of Zelensky.
President Putin has made no comments regarding the recent situation, but reports indicate that he is quite satisfied. This is interpreted as a judgment that Russia could gain an advantage in future peace negotiations, given the publicly exposed rift between Ukraine and the U.S.
The Guardian, citing sources familiar with the Kremlin, stated, "It is clear that President Putin must have enjoyed this situation," adding, "Now he believes he can make more demands on Ukraine." They continued, "For President Putin, this summit represents a greater victory than any military operation since the start of the war."
Russia's policy of "shaking up Zelensky" is expected to intensify. President Putin is reportedly expected to express his opinion that President Trump should replace Zelensky soon. Russian Senator Alexey Pushkov also claimed in a post on Telegram, "The White House will now take a closer look at other presidential candidates in Ukraine."