Zelenskyy was asked if Trump was using him as a scapegoat ahead of the midterms. His response had the room erupt in laughter: ‘This is my answer’

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy faced questions at a press conference held at the European Union Council in Brussels on Friday. Sky News correspondent Alistair Bunkall raised the issue of whether Trump might be treating him as a scapegoat.

According to Mediaite, Bunkall pointed to the difficult midterm elections ahead for Trump, his very low personal popularity, very high diesel prices in the U.S., and the war that Trump started in the Middle East not going the way he wants. He then asked Zelenskyy, “Do you think you are being treated as a scapegoat for his own problems?”

Zelenskyy paused for a long time before smiling and responding, “This is my answer.” The answer triggered laughter in the crowd. Bunkall followed with, “Thank you so much.”

Zelenskyy accuses Trump of taking Russia’s side

Zelenskyy has said he felt “betrayed” by a deal between Trump and Vladimir Putin that lifts Russian sanctions and allows diesel imports into the U.S. He indicated that such diesel could go toward funding Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. In recent days, Trump has repeatedly attacked Zelenskyy and called for him to be replaced as Ukraine’s leader. 

Speaking to Piers Morgan Uncensored, Zelenskyy stated, “It’s painful when President Trump chooses one side, not our side.” He went on to say, “But we are okay that he’s in the middle. But if you’re in the middle, you have to stay in the middle. Not on the wrong side.” His comments contradict Trump’s claims of progress. 

Zelenskyy also pressed accusations that Starlink service was disabled during a Russian missile attack, which he said limited Ukraine’s ability to defend itself. “I am sure they knew what they did, absolutely. Because it was 1 a.m. at night, [when] Starlink was blocked by SpaceX and the United States,” he said.

He added, “It’s not just about attack. It’s also about defending life. So people were killed because, not enough destroying, not enough interceptors, including interceptors with Starlink, which didn’t work. Of course.”

In response, Musk attributed the limits on the government-owned portion of the network, known as Starshield, to decisions by Trump and the Department of Defense. “Any limits on speed or usage are decided by the US military and ultimately POTUS,” Musk wrote in a post on X.

He further explained, “Starlink is a commercial service owned and controlled by SpaceX. Usage of Starlink is limited to civilian or defensive activities and cannot be used for offensive military action, as doing so would be inappropriate for a commercial company.”

The Telegraph’s Joe Barnes reported on Friday that “Elon Musk came to Donald Trump with the plan to throttle Ukraine’s use of SpaceX’s Starshield satellite internet network, sources have told the Telegraph.” According to Barnes, the proposal came during the U.S. President’s row with Volodymyr Zelenskyy over strikes on Russian oil refineries.