In Abrupt Change, Trump Says Ukraine In 'Position To Win' War With Russia

In an abrupt change showing his frustration with Russian President Vladimir Putin, US President Donald Trump said Ukraine could win back all of its territory from Russia with the help of its European allies.

Trump has previously said both sides would have to cede land to end the war. Russia currently controls around one-fifth of Ukrainian territory, including the Black Sea peninsula of Crimea, which was illegally annexed in 2014.

After a speech at the UN General Assembly where he called on European allies during his address to immediately stop buying oil from Russia, Trump told reporters at the start of a meeting with Zelenskyy that NATO countries should shoot down Russian aircraft if they enter the alliance's airspace.

Zelenskyy: Ukraine Is Counting On US Security Backstop

He followed that with comments in a social media post after the Zelenskyy meeting saying Russia has been fighting "aimlessly for three and and a half years a War that should have taken a Real Military Power less than a week to win."

"After getting to know and fully understand the Ukraine/Russia Military and Economic situation and, after seeing the Economic trouble it is causing Russia, 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.

Zelenskyy noted the "big shift" in Trump's comments while speaking alone at a news conference, adding that the US leader's understanding of the situation on the ground in Ukraine is now much clearer.

"Trump had a relationship with Putin and he trusted him. Putin was telling Trump fairytales," Zelenskyy said, referring to Trump as a "gamechanger."

"I told Trump that Putin will not wait for the end of his war in Ukraine -- he will try to find a weak spot in NATO and this is already happening... Putin will want to 'exchange' one war for another."

Zelenskyy entered the day looking for Trump to ratchet up pressure on Moscow to end its war -- the longest and deadliest conflict in Europe since World War II -- against Ukraine.

SEE ALSO: As NATO Mulls Response To Trespassing Russian Warplanes, Can It Shoot Them Down?

It didn't take long as Trump said as the two headed into the meeting "Yes, I do" when asked if he would support shooting down Russian aircraft if they were found inside NATO airspace.

He said the involvement of the United States in such action would depend on the circumstances but did not elaborate.

Trump's answer follows a series of recent incursions by Russian fighter jets and drones into alliance airspace in countries including Poland and Estonia.

They also came after the US president called on European allies during his UN address to immediately stop buying oil from Russia and accused China and India of funding Moscow's war against Ukraine through their purchases.

Trump said he could impose sanctions on Russia to stop the fighting but without similar actions from Europe, "we're all wasting a lot of time."

Trump Threatens Russia With 'Powerful Tariffs' Over Ukraine; Criticizes EU

Sanctions, along with security guarantees in the event of a peace deal between Kyiv and Moscow, are areas where Zelenskyy is hoping to get White House support during their discussions.

Trump said he plans to call Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, an ally of the US leader, to urge him to stop purchasing Russian oil.

In response to Trump's social media remarks, Russian Deputy UN Ambassador Dmitry Polyansky told reporters: "Don't get so excited about every tweet."

EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said she welcomed Trump's shift in his view on the war, saying, "We are very positive about this, because these are all the right things."

"Yes, we should stop buying Russian energy. Yes, Ukraine should win the war and all these other statements that [Trump] made today regarding Ukraine and Russia," Kallas said.

Zelenskyy, who is set to address the assembly on September 24, told reporters he saw movement from Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico on ending Russian oil purchases as well.

Hungary and Slovakia, both landlocked countries that share a border with Ukraine, have resisted calls to end their reliance on Russian energy without promises of securing sufficient alternative supplies.

Trump also appeared to give Ukraine a pledge of military support saying the US will continue to supply weapons to allies "for NATO to do what they want with them."

SEE ALSO: Security Guarantees? Face Time With Putin? Zelenskyy Gets Warmer Trump Reception But Unclear Results

Zelenskyy also noted Trump was "ready" to give Ukraine security guarantees after the war is over.

"We don't have details. We will work on what we need then and also what we need before that happens," he said.

Talks on bringing the two sides to a peace agreement have stumbled for several months.

Trump met with Putin in Alaska last month producing a glimmer of hope that movement toward peace might begin.

But the Kremlin quickly threw cold water on the prospect of a meeting between Putin and Zelenskyy in any location other than Moscow, which is unacceptable to Ukraine.

The past few weeks have brought no discernible progress toward peace and plenty of belligerence from Russia, which has pressed forward on the front lines, hit civilians in Ukraine with massive bombardments, and challenged NATO with drone and warplane incursions.

Massive Russian Air Strikes Hit Kyiv In Record Barrage

"Putin has shown no interest in a negotiated way out of the war, other than on his totally unrealistic terms," Lawrence Freedman, an analyst and emeritus professor of war studies at Kings College London, wrote in a blog post published on September 23.

Trump has voiced growing frustration with Russia's recalcitrance and has repeatedly said he might hit Moscow with new sanctions, including secondary measures that target countries and companies buying Russian energy or delivering technology it can use in the war against Ukraine, and bipartisan groups of US lawmakers have proposed sanctions legislation in Congress.

SEE ALSO: Can NATO Countries Stop Buying Russian Oil, As Trump Demands?

So far, other than increasing tariffs on Indian imports by 25 percent over its purchases of Russian oil, Trump has refrained from slapping new punishments on Russia and its trading partners.

At times, he has voiced concern that imposing new sanctions would hamper his efforts to bring Putin to the table.