German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul on Friday played down US President Donald Trump's latest criticism of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, saying the remarks did not signal weaker US support for Ukraine.
"The current statements by the American president should certainly be viewed within the context of the final phase of the election campaign in the US," he told a press conference in Berlin. "I believe we must focus on the core of what the US continues to provide — namely, support for Ukraine, in coordination with us."
Trump sharply criticized Zelenskyy on Thursday over Ukrainian strikes on Russian oil refineries, arguing that the attacks were driving up global energy prices. He also questioned Zelenskyy's leadership and willingness to negotiate, saying, "Zelenskyy is not a good guy for us to deal with."
Wadephul described the remarks as campaign rhetoric and stressed that Washington, with Europe's encouragement, was still working to advance a negotiation process. He insisted that it was not Zelenskyy but the Russian side that was blocking progress.
"From my perspective, there is still a clear lack of any willingness to negotiate on the part of the Russian president, who continues his bombardment — indeed, we have just seen a new, tragic high in the number of civilian casualties in Ukraine over the past month," the German minister said.
Wadephul reiterated that Europe stood clearly with Ukraine as the country under attack but was also prepared to facilitate any peace negotiations.
"That is also a point that I once again made to the Russian foreign minister. Unfortunately, it has so far fallen on deaf ears," he said, referring to his meeting with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov in New York last month.
