Donald Trump Jr, the eldest son of US President Donald Trump, has suggested that his father could walk away from the war in Ukraine. Speaking at a Middle East conference, Trump Jr launched a tirade against Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and the European Union, questioning the purpose of continued fighting.
Trump Jr, a key figure in the Maga movement though holding no formal role in the administration, claimed that Ukraine's 'corrupt' rich had fled the country, leaving 'what they believed to be the peasant class' to fight. He alleged that Zelenskyy was prolonging the war because he would lose an election if it ended, and described Ukraine as 'far more corrupt than Russia'.
He also criticised EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas, arguing that European sanctions had merely increased oil prices, allowing Russia to fund its war. 'We are going to wait for Russia to go bankrupt – that is not a plan,' he said. Trump Jr claimed that during the 2022 election campaign, only three voters he canvassed considered Ukraine a top-10 issue, citing the fentanyl crisis as a greater threat.
Without providing evidence, Trump Jr asserted that half the supercars in Monaco bore Ukrainian number plates, suggesting the wealthy had fled. 'The rich fled and they left what they believed to be the peasant class to fight these wars,' he said. Asked if his father might walk away, Trump Jr replied, 'Maybe he will,' adding that Trump is 'one of the most unpredictable people in politics' and that the US would no longer be 'the idiot with the chequebook'.
