‘Dead wrong’: Dutton’s verdict on Trump’s controversial Ukraine comments

Peter Dutton has slammed Donald Trump over his controversial comments on the Russia-Ukraine war in rare criticism of the US President.

Peter Dutton has slammed Donald Trump over his controversial comments on the Russia-Ukraine war and, squarely stating the US President is “dead wrong”, in a rare moment of criticism towards Mr Trump.

Speaking on the Today show on Friday morning, the Liberal leader hit back at Mr Trump’s provocative comments towards Ukraine’s leader Volodymyr Zelensky and his decision to lay the blame for the war at Ukraine’s feet, saying we “can’t rewrite history”.

“Has Donald Trump lost the plot on Ukraine?,” Today show host Karl Stefanovic asked Mr Dutton.

“Well, I think he’s dead wrong in relation to Ukraine and some of the public commentary that we’ve seen, it just doesn’t accord with the facts,” Mr Dutton replied.

“The fact is that Ukraine was invaded by Russia.”

The Opposition leader said Australia will continue to stand up for Ukraine – which Australia has provided $1.5bn worth of aid to fight back against Russia’s invading forces.

“I think there should be peace and a discussion that involves Ukraine but it’s wrong for the President to be critical of President Zelensky the way that he has. And America’s an incredibly important ally to us but I think they’ve made the wrong call in this regard.”

Mr Dutton criticised Trump’s comments on Ukraine and leader Volodymyr Zelensky. Picture: Channel 9

MORE: High roller Trump kids’ multimillion dollar digs

“It didn’t take you long to fall out of love with Donald Trump,” Stefanovic remarked, sparking a chuckle from the Liberal leader, who went on to justify his stance.

“Well, I just think we need to be honest. And yes, the President’s a master negotiator and no doubt there’s something happening in the background where he’s trying to leverage. But you can’t start accusing the Ukrainians of going into Russia and that it was their initiative.

“I saw the intelligence at the start of this as defence minister, and Russia had deliberately planned this incursion. People have lost their lives. Obviously, the country is devastated and we can’t rewrite history, that’s the reality.”

Stefanovic questioned if the US President has “lost the plot”. Picture: Channel 9

MORE: Inside the private homes of Aussie prime ministers

Mr Dutton argued Germany and Italy should be doing their part to support peacekeeping efforts.

“Clearly America wants Europe and nato to do more to provide that peace in Europe and they should step up,” he said.

“People talk about a broader war in Europe, which would be a devastation for Europe, obviously, but for the world as well.”

It comes after Mr Dutton earlier called out Mr Trump in an interview on 2GB radio on Thursday.

During the interview, Mr Dutton said he was proud of Australia’s support of Ukraine, adding that Russia’s illegal invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 was “unprovoked” and an “act of aggression”.

“The thought that President Zelensky or the Ukrainian people started this battle, or somehow they were responsible for the war, is just wrong,” he said.

“It’s a democracy, and this is a fight for civilisation. Vladimir Putin is a murderous dictator, and we shouldn’t be giving him an inch.”

Mr Dutton also urged caution in Mr Trump’s future commentary on the war after the US leader initiated peace talks with high-level Russian and US officials in the Saudi capital of Riyadh.

“I think President Trump has got it wrong in relation to some of the public commentary that I’ve seen him make in relation to President Zelensky and the situation in Ukraine,” he said.

“I think very careful thought needs to be given about the next steps, because if we make Europe less safe, or we provide some sort of support to Putin deliberately or inadvertently, that there’s a terrible, terrible outcome.”

Mr Trump also accused Mr Zelensky, who was democratically elected in 2019, of being a “dictator without elections”. Picture: Saul Loeb/AFP

Overnight on Wednesday, Mr Trump accused Mr Zelensky of having “talked the United States of America into spending $350bn, to go into a war that couldn’t be won,” following a deepening rift between the two countries.

In an inflamed statement shared on Truth Social, Mr Trump accused the leader of being a “modestly successful comedian” and said his actions have “shattered” his country and allowed millions to have “unnecessarily died”.

Mr Trump also accused Mr Zelensky, who was democratically elected in 2019, of being a “dictator without elections” who soon “won’t have a country left”.

Mr Trump notably has not called Russian President Vladimir Putin a “dictator” despite that country’s heavily criticised polls that have seen Putin effectively in power for 24 years.

The conflict between Ukraine and Russia has devastated Ukraine’s east and subjected cities all over the country to daily missile and drone attacks.

Of the 6.8 million Ukrainians that have sought refuge outside of their homeland, some 11,400 have found safe haven in Australia.

Originally published as ‘Dead wrong’: Dutton’s verdict on Trump’s controversial Ukraine comments