Donald Trump and Volodymyr Zelensky are at odds after the Riyadh summit.
The US president harshly attacked the Ukrainian leader, calling him "an unelected dictator and a mediocre comedian" and accusing him of starting a war against Russia.
But what is the truth behind his claims?
The Italian daily La Stampa has listed some of them:
"They had three years to sit at the negotiating table, they should never have started this war," Trump said, commenting on recent reports of Kiev's dissatisfaction with US-Russia talks.
Facts: The invasion of Ukraine has been widely condemned by the international community as an act of aggression.
Before the Russian invasion on February 24, 2022, Zelensky repeatedly offered to meet with his Russian counterpart. Five days before Moscow’s troops entered Ukraine, the Ukrainian leader told Putin: “We are ready to sit down and talk. Choose the platform you like.”
To deter Moscow, the United States declassified and published intelligence reports revealing the Tsar's aggressive plans, warning that harsh economic sanctions would follow if he went ahead.
In the days and weeks following the invasion, Ukrainian and Russian negotiators also held several rounds of talks in Belarus and Turkey.
However, Russia's demands were extreme, including the partial demilitarization of Ukraine, an option that would have effectively crippled the country's ability to defend itself.
"We didn't see an election in Ukraine. The president, I hate to say it, has fallen to a 4 percent approval rating and the country is torn apart," Trump said.
The facts: Although Zelensky's popularity has fallen since the invasion, a February poll by the Kyiv-based International Institute of Sociology found that 57 percent of the population trusts him, up from 52 percent in December.
Polls also highlight that the majority of Ukrainians believe this is not the right time for elections.
"Our position is that during a war there is no place for politics, and especially not for new elections," said Valentyn Nalyvaichenko, an MP from former Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko's Fatherland party and former head of the SBU security agency.
"I think President Zelensky said last week that he doesn't know where half of the money we gave them is. Well, we gave them about $350 billion. We have to compare that to Europe because Europe gave a much smaller percentage. I think our allies gave Kiev $100 billion. But where is all this money? Where does it go? I've never seen an accounting of that," Trump said.
The facts: There are many numbers floating around and calculating individual contributions is complex. However, the Kiel Institute for the World Economy’s Ukraine Support Tracker shows that in total Europe has allocated €132.3 billion to Ukraine, compared to €114.2 billion from the United States.
The largest contributions in percentage terms to GDP were made by Estonia and Denmark (2.5%), Lithuania (2.1%), Latvia (1.8%), Finland (1.3%), Sweden and Poland (1.2%).
"Russia has no intention of destroying Kiev. If they wanted to, they would have done so. Moscow is capable of obliterating 100 percent of Ukrainian cities, including Kiev, but now they are only attacking 20 percent," Trump said.
Facts: Russia has unleashed the full force of its military, including long-range missiles and artillery, on Ukrainian cities, causing widespread destruction, particularly in the eastern part of the country.
Faced with dwindling weapons stocks, Putin had to ask Kim Jong-un for help, starting to use North Korean missiles.
There is no indication that Moscow stockpiled weapons or slowed down military capabilities during the conflict.
"Russia wants to do something. They want to stop the brutal barbarity," Trump said.
Facts: Russian officials, including President Putin, have repeatedly stated that they will not stop fighting in Ukraine until all objectives are achieved, whether through diplomacy or military force.
Putin has already called for the "demilitarization of Ukraine" and said he wants full control of four Ukrainian regions: Donetsk, Kherson, Zaporizhzhia and Luhansk, which are now completely occupied by Moscow.
According to Western intelligence officials, intelligence also suggests that Putin still wants to control all of Ukraine. (A2 Televizion)
