Rep. Tom Suozzi (D-N.Y.) slammed President Trump over the war in Ukraine on Sunday, also saying that Russian President Vladimir Putin shouldn’t be awarded “for all the awful things that have happened to the Ukrainian people.”
“Trump has been wrong in the way he’s handled this, I want to give Brian credit, as co-chair of the Ukrainian caucus, for standing up and saying, ‘You cannot reward a dictator.’ … Putin is the dictator,” Suozzi told CBS News’s Margaret Brennan on “Face the Nation” in an interview alongside Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick (R-Pa.).
“Putin invaded. Zelensky is democratically elected. We cannot reward the guy responsible for murdering, for kidnapping, for raping, for all the awful things that have happened to the Ukrainian people. We all need to stand up for the Ukrainian people,” he added.
Zelensky, Trump and Vice President Vance recently had a tense Oval Office meeting that sent shock waves through Washington and the world. The meeting featured shouting and finger-pointing, with the Ukrainian leader and the president arguing over U.S. support for Ukraine.
Following the meeting, Trump said on his Truth Social platform that the Ukrainian president “is not ready for Peace if America is involved, because he feels our involvement gives him a big advantage in negotiations.” A minerals deal between the U.S. and Ukraine that was set to be signed was also put off following the meeting.
House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) said in a recent interview that Zelensky had done a complete “about-face” regarding the deal.
“I’m really grateful and glad that Zelensky, in the last several days, has done an about-face. He’s effectively apologized for all that. And he said, ‘Oh no, no, we would like that deal after all.’ I think he had a rude awakening,” Johnson said on John Catsimatidis’s radio show “Cats Roundtable.”
The Hill has reached out to the White House for comment.
