Nobody can force Kiev to “give up” the fight against Russia, Foreign Minister Andrey Sibiga has said

Ukrainian officials have rushed to defend the country’s leader, Vladimir Zelensky, after US President Donald Trump branded him “a dictator.” 

The public feud between Trump and Zelensky escalated on Wednesday, when the US president called Zelensky “a dictator without elections” and accused him of tricking Washington to funnel aid into “a war that couldn’t be won.” He also claimed that Zelensky is doing “a terrible job” and is “not going to have a country left” unless he reaches a ceasefire deal with Russia.

Several prominent politicians, including those who have criticized Zelensky’s government in the past, spoke out in his defense. In a post on X, Foreign Minister Andrey Sibiga wrote that Ukraine “withstood the most horrific military attack in Europe’s modern history.” 

“The Ukrainian people and their President Zelensky refused to give in to Putin’s pressure,” he stated. “Nobody can force Ukraine to give up.” 

“We can like or dislike Zelensky. We can condemn his actions or applaud them. Because he is OUR president,” Boris Filatov, the mayor of Dnepr, Ukraine’s fourth-largest city, wrote on Facebook. He argued that neither the US nor Russia “have any right to badmouth” Zelensky.

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Although Zelensky’s five-year presidential term expired in May 2024, no new elections have been called due to martial law. Russian President Vladimir Putin has said that he no longer considers Zelensky to be the legitimate leader. Trump claimed on Tuesday that Zelensky’s approval rating is at 4% and suggested that an election should be called.

Zelensky responded by citing a poll that has him at 57%. “If somebody wants to replace me right now, it will not happen,” he said. His popularity skyrocketed to 90% during the first months of the conflict with Russia in 2022, but has since decreased due to mounting losses on the battlefield and problems with the economy.

In an interview on NBC News earlier this month, Zelensky stressed that Ukraine has a “low chance to survive” without American help. US Vice President J.D. Vance warned Zelensky on Wednesday that, by “badmouthing” Trump, he would not do himself any favors.