Trump’s comments about Zelensky, during an interview with US outlet Newsmax, reflect the deteriorating relationship between the US and Ukraine.
The US president said he is “not a big fan of Zelensky” and that he is “not a good guy for us to deal with.
“He doesn’t want to settle. He says he wants to settle, but he doesn’t,” Trump said.
“As you know, Putin hates Zelensky, and Zelensky hates Putin,” he added. “And when you have that kind of hatred, it’s very hard to get something settled.”
When asked about Ukraine’s renewed strikes on Russian oil refineries, Trump said it was “a disgrace”.
“All he’s doing is making the world oil price higher… There are a lot of targets that you can hit.”
Trump is frustrated at Ukraine’s continued targeting of Russian oil refineries because the US recently announced a deal to import 300,000 tonnes of Russian diesel to the American market, in an effort to bring down fuel prices.
That deal, in turn, infuriated Zelensky, who called it a gift to Putin.
Zelensky’s anger was heightened earlier this week, when restrictions were placed on the US-owned Starlink internet network, which is critical for Kyiv’s military abilities to defend itself against Russian attacks.
On Tuesday night, when the communications network was limited, there were several deadly Russian strikes on Ukraine, with residents and the government saying there was no prior warning of the incoming attack.
The Trump administration had previously warned that it could withhold intelligence sharing – which is crucial for Ukraine’s defences – if Kyiv does not stop hitting Russia’s oil refineries.
Zelensky has been holding back-to-back talks with EU leaders while in Brussels. On Thursday he met Nato chief Marke Rutte, as well as the leaders of Poland, France, Denmark and Belgium.
A day earlier, he met UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham at No 10 in London.
At the summit on Friday, Zelensky said he would hold talks with the chiefs of the European Council and European Commission, and the prime ministers of Hungary, Finland, and Sweden.