Trump praises Russia's military performance and argues for stopping funding for the fight against Ukraine

SAVANNAH, Georgia – SAVANNAH, Georgia (AP) — Donald Trump on Tuesday praised Russia's military record in historic conflicts and derided U.S. aid to Ukraine, reiterating that if elected president he would quickly end the war sparked by Moscow's invasion.

In his speech in Savannah, Georgia, Trump mocked President Joe Biden's frequent claim that the U.S. would support Ukrainian forces until Kyiv wins the war. He referenced two long-ago conflicts to show that Moscow would not lose – the former Soviet Union's role in defeating Adolf Hitler and the Nazis in World War II in the 1940s and French Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte's failed invasion of Russia more than a century earlier.

Trump insisted that the US must “pull out” but declined to say how he would negotiate an end to US involvement in the war.

“Biden says, 'We're not going to leave until we win,'” Trump said, lowering his voice to imitate the Democratic president. “What happens when they win? That's what they do: They fight wars. As someone said to me the other day, they defeated Hitler, they defeated Napoleon. That's what they do. They fight. And it's not pleasant.”

A representative of Trump's campaign team also said on Tuesday that the Republican candidate will not meet this week with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, who is traveling to the United States for the opening of the UN General Assembly.

No meeting between the two was planned, according to the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss internal planning, although a statement from Ukrainian officials last week said Zelensky had planned to meet the former president.

On Tuesday, Trump reiterated his description of Zelensky as “the greatest salesman in the world” who ensured that US aid to Ukraine was negotiated.

“Every time Zelensky comes to the United States, he takes $100 billion with him,” Trump falsely said. Since the Russian invasion in 2022, the United States has provided more than $56 billion in security assistance, according to the State Department.

Trump and Zelensky have a long history together, dating back to the former US president's time in the White House. The then-president pressured Zelensky to investigate Biden and his son Hunter, as well as a cybersecurity company that falsely linked Trump to Ukraine. That call – and the White House's suspension of $400 million in military aid – led to Trump's first impeachment.

Zelenskyj plans to meet with Biden and Harris in Washington.

Earlier this week, Zelensky suggested in an interview with the New Yorker that Trump does not understand the conflict and is oversimplifying it. He said his running mate, JD Vance, was “too radical” and was essentially advocating that Ukraine “make a sacrifice” by “giving up its territories.”

On Monday, Trump's son Donald Jr. criticized Zelensky on X, reminding his supporters that the suspect in connection with the second assassination attempt on his father had sharply criticized Trump's foreign policy approach, including the war in Ukraine.

“So a foreign leader who has received billions of dollars in funding from American taxpayers comes to our country and has the nerve to attack the Republican presidential nomination?” he posted.

___

Associated Press writer Michelle L. Price in New York contributed to this report.