Russia reacted with glee on Friday (Feb 28) to the bitter clash between Donald Trump and Volodymyr Zelenskiy in the White House, saying the Ukrainian leader got what he deserved.
The acrimonious shouting match was a gift to Moscow, which is working to build ties with Trump's new administration while trying to discredit Zelenskiy and undermine his legitimacy.
Former Russian president Dmitry Medvedev said Zelenskiy, who was accused by Trump and Vice President JD Vance of being disrespectful towards the United States, had received a "solid slap".
"A brutal dressing down in the Oval Office," Medvedev, who is deputy chairman of Russia's Security Council, posted on Telegram.
Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said it was a miracle that Trump and Vance restrained themselves from hitting Zelenskiy during the argument, which was broadcast on news channels around the world. She said Zelenskiy was biting the hand that fed him.
Hardline nationalist TV commentator Vladimir Solovyov announced a special show devoted to "Zelenskiy's suicide in the White House".
Medvedev, in his post, insulted Zelenskiy and said he had finally been told the truth to his face that, as he put it, "the Kyiv regime is playing with World War Three." He called for military aid to Ukraine to be halted, something Moscow has long been pushing for.
Russia has long portrayed Zelenskiy as an unstable and self-obsessed US puppet who was used by the previous Biden administration to try to inflict a strategic defeat on Moscow by "fighting to the last Ukrainian."
Zelenskiy has rejected that characterisation, saying he is doing all he can to defend his country from Russia with help from Ukraine's allies.
The rapid rapprochement between Moscow and Washington has worried Ukraine and its European allies, who fear that Trump and President Vladimir Putin could cut a deal that leaves them sidelined and undermines their security.
Putin has said repeatedly that Zelenskiy is not a legitimate leader because his five-year term expired last year. Ukraine has been unable to hold elections because it has been under martial law since full-scale war erupted in February 2022.
Trump last week echoed Putin's narrative, describing Zelenskiy as a "dictator without elections".
The meltdown between Trump and Zelenskiy in the White House leaves the Ukrainian leader more exposed than ever in the three-year war, during which his country has relied heavily on aid and weapons supplied by Trump's predecessor Joe Biden.
Former Kremlin adviser Sergei Markov said the Oval Office clash was likely to accelerate the end of Zelenskiy's political career, something some Russian officials have been keen to see for some time, believing it will be easier to strike a peace deal with someone else.
"The main conclusion that everyone has drawn from the public scandal of Zelenskiy and Trump is that Zelenskiy is completely out of line and should step down from the presidency as soon as possible," said Markov.
Konstantin Kosachyov, deputy chairman of Russia's upper house of parliament, said the bruising encounter had found out Zelenskiy and revealed him in his true colours.
"Zelenskiy lost this round with a deafening rattle. And he will have to crawl to the next one on his knees," Kosachyov wrote on Telegram.
Source: Reuters
