President Donald Trump downplayed the impact of reports from Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky that Russia is sharing satellite imagery of U.S. bases in the Middle East to help Iran in the war.
“Well, we’ll find out if that’s true,” Trump told reporters Monday on Air Force One. “I’ll ask [Russian President Vladimir] Putin about it. We’ll find out.”
Trump, while en route to Michigan for an appearance at General Motors and to deliver an economic address, added that, if Zelensky is right, it “hasn’t had much impact because we’ve knocked the hell out of” Iran.
Four U.S. service members were killed in Jordan and Iraq earlier this month as the U.S. and Iran escalated strikes against one another after the memorandum of understanding regarding nuclear nonproliferation appeared to come apart.
“Venezuela had all Russian equipment. How did that work out? Not too good,” Trump said. “So they may be giving, but if they are, it hasn’t worked out because they have no army, they have no air force, they have no navy, they have no nothing. So it hasn’t worked out well. I don’t think they’ve been doing it, certainly not at a high level. And if they have, it has been very unimpactful.”
Zelensky, who is meeting with Trump this week on the sidelines of the late Sen. Lindsey Graham’s (R-SC) funeral, announced he had directed his own intelligence agencies to disclose what information they have about Russia assisting Iran.
“On July 19 and 20 alone, four air bases fell within the area of interest of Russian satellites – two in Bahrain, one in Jordan, and one in Kuwait,” Zelensky wrote on X. “Russia must be stopped. This war must be stopped. Pressure on the aggressor must work.”
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Trump last week warned Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping that it would be “very bad” for them if they collaborated with Iran during the war after War Secretary Pete Hegseth told Congress that “There’s definitely adversary alignment.”
“President Xi, at our recent meeting in Beijing, China, told me that he would not, under any circumstances, give or sell Weapons to the Islamic Republic of Iran,” Trump wrote on social media. “Likewise, President Putin, despite the horrible War going on in Ukraine (The relationship remains, as it does with President Zelenskyy), told me that he would not sell Weapons to Iran… If they did, it would be very bad for them — Certainly not in their best interests.”