Russian state media has unleashed a wave of criticism toward U.S. President Donald Trump after he accused Vladimir Putin of making “a lot of nonsense” regarding the war in Ukraine, as reported by the exiled news outlet Agentsvo on Wednesday.
Trump’s pointed remarks came after his phone conversation with Putin on July 4, where both leaders failed to make any significant progress on resolving Russia’s conflict in Ukraine, despite Trump’s ongoing vows to find a resolution.
Media outlets that previously depicted Trump as a pragmatic choice compared to his successor Joe Biden are now openly questioning his judgment, intelligence, and political reliability.
Vladimir Solovyov, a prominent pro-Kremlin television commentator, criticized Trump during his major talk show for addressing Putin in what he characterized as a disrespectful manner.
“Trump has begun to speak impolitely,” Solovyov stated. “We perceive that he is experiencing a form of ‘Bidenization.’ His conviction that he is the sole individual capable of communicating with Putin has turned him into a different version of Biden.”
Solovyov also mentioned that Russia has no obligation to cater to Trump’s preferences.
The following day, Olga Skabeyeva, a news anchor for state television, suggested that the U.S. could utilize Ukraine’s request for an inquiry into Russia’s alleged chemical weapons use as a pretext to “crush our regime.” She posed the question, “Will we see a test tube from [CIA Director John] Ratcliffe?” implying that American intelligence might fabricate evidence to implicate Russia.
The state-controlled media outlet Vesti expressed that Trump’s discontent with Putin indicates his concern that the war in Ukraine is “not unfolding as he anticipated.”
On state broadcaster Rossia 1, a correspondent took it a step further: “Trump’s ‘personal Afghanistan’ is on the horizon following Ukraine’s downfall. The leader of the White House is increasingly resembling his predecessor, whom he detests.”
This change in rhetoric has been noticeable across various Russian pro-war Telegram channels and social media platforms known as Z-channels.
War correspondent Alexander Kotz ridiculed Trump’s diplomatic blunder at the White House, where he inquired how Liberian President Joseph Boakai could be so fluent in English, given that English is the official language of Liberia.
“Trump could potentially outdo Biden in making public blunders by the end of his tenure,” Kotz remarked.
On VKontakte, the largest social media platform in Russia, criticism of Trump has surged. According to Botnadzor, a watchdog monitoring state-affiliated bot activity, over 2,000 comments criticizing Trump emerged under posts concerning his recent statements.
Many of these comments referred to Trump as a “fool,” “blabbermouth,” or “bipolar,” while others claimed he was “bluffing” about increasing weapons supplies to Kyiv and would not take substantial action.
After his phone conversation with Putin on July 4, Trump assured that the U.S. would resume weapons deliveries to Ukraine to aid in defending against Russian assaults.
