President Donald Trump on Tuesday voiced support for Ukraine’s full territorial restoration, signaling a major shift in U.S. policy and marking his most forceful endorsement yet of Kyiv’s wartime objectives.
“I think Ukraine, with the support of the European Union, is in a position to fight and WIN all of Ukraine back in its original form,” Trump wrote on his social media platform, shortly after meeting Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly in New York.
He added that with “time, patience, and the financial support of Europe and, in particular, NATO,” Ukraine’s prewar borders were “very much an option.”
The remarks represent a dramatic reversal from Trump’s recent suggestion that Kyiv consider territorial concessions to end the war. Just weeks earlier, the president had publicly cast doubt on Ukraine’s ability to reclaim areas seized by Russia since the 2014 annexation of Crimea — a position that had rattled European allies and Ukrainian officials.
Zelenskyy welcomed Trump’s comments as a major diplomatic breakthrough.
“Trump is a game-changer by himself,” the Ukrainian leader said, praising the U.S. president’s new stance during a press briefing following their meeting.
In his own address to the U.N. General Assembly, Trump took direct aim at Russia’s faltering invasion, calling Moscow’s campaign “aimless” and a symbol of weak leadership.
“Russia has been fighting aimlessly for three and a half years a war that should have taken a real military power less than a week to win,” Trump said. “This is not distinguishing Russia. In fact, it is very much making them look like a ‘paper tiger.’”
He described the conflict as “a quick little skirmish” that had spiraled into “a humiliating drain” on Moscow. “It shows you what bad leadership can do to a country,” he added. “The only question now is how many lives will be needlessly lost on both sides.”
In a further shift from earlier diplomacy-oriented proposals, Trump warned that should Moscow refuse to negotiate, the U.S. would pursue harsher economic measures.
“If Russia is not ready to make a deal to end the war, then the United States is fully prepared to impose a very strong round of powerful tariffs, which would stop the bloodshed, I believe, very quickly,” Trump said.
Previously, Trump had floated the idea of land swaps with Russia as part of a potential peace agreement — a proposal that drew sharp rebukes from Kyiv and other NATO capitals.
Trump also responded to rising regional tensions following the violation of Estonian airspace by three Russian fighter jets last week. He stated that NATO allies had the right to defend their sovereignty and that U.S. support would depend on the circumstances.
He further called on Europe to halt imports of Russian oil and gas — a demand echoed by Zelenskyy. “We have great respect for the fight that Ukraine is putting up,” Trump told Zelenskyy, who responded that there was “good news” from the battlefield.
The policy shift came the same day the United Nations Human Rights Office reported a 40% increase in civilian casualties in Ukraine in the first eight months of 2025, compared with the same period in 2024. The report accused Russian forces of widespread torture and ill-treatment of detainees in occupied territories.
French President Emmanuel Macron welcomed the U.S. reversal. “I welcome the fact that the president of the United States believes in Ukraine’s ability not only to hold the course but to prevail,” he said in remarks to reporters in New York.
The renewed U.S. support is likely to reinvigorate efforts among NATO members to sustain military and financial aid to Kyiv, though it may also escalate tensions with the Kremlin.
