A Russian official fired back at President Donald Trump with a bizarre comparison after Trump mocked the country’s military in a social media post on Tuesday.
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov disputed Trump’s characterization that Russia is a “paper tiger” during an interview with Russian-state media, insisting the country should be referred to as a “real bear.” The Russian government’s defiance comes as Trump has voiced growing frustration with Russian President Vladimir Putin for refusing to end the war and suggested that unceasing conflict exposed Russia’s military weakness and economic problems.
“Russia is by no means a tiger. Russia is traditionally seen as a bear. There is no such thing as paper bears. Russia is a real bear,” Peskov told RBC radio. “There is nothing paper about it.”
Trump sharply criticized Russia for continuing its war with Ukraine after three-and-a-half years of fighting following a meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy at the United Nations on Tuesday.
The war has come at a steep price for Moscow with a recent study estimating that nearly one million Russian soldiers have been killed or injured during the war.
“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. This is not distinguishing Russia. In fact, it is very much making them look like ‘a paper tiger,’” Trump wrote in a post on the social media platform Truth Social on Tuesday.
The president also alluded to his increasingly cool relationship with Putin during his UN speech.
“I’ve also been working relentlessly stopping the killing in Ukraine,” Trump said. “I thought that would be, of the seven wars that I stopped, I thought that would be the easiest because of my relationship with President Putin, which had always been a good one.”
“But in war, you never know what’s going to happen,” Trump added. “It was supposed to be just a quick little skirmish. It’s not making Russia look good, it’s making them look bad.”
Putin joined Chinese President Xi Jinping and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un for a trilateral military parade in Beijing on Sept. 2. Trump subsequently blasted the trio for working to “conspire against” the United States.
Trump also voiced optimism on Tuesday that Ukraine could ultimately retake land held by Russia with the financial backing of the European Union and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). Russia currently controls one-fifth of Ukrainian territory.
“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 on Truth Social. “With time, patience, and the financial support of Europe and, in particular, NATO, the original Borders from where this War started, is very much an option. Why not?”
Zelenskyy praised the president’s comments while also conceding his relationship with Trump has improved since their public spat in February.
“President Trump was more positive in it, and he showed that he wants to support Ukraine to the very end,” Zelenskyy told Fox News’ Bret Baier. “I was very positive about signals from the side that Trump and America will be with us to the end of the war.”
“I think he understands for today that we can’t just swap territories. It’s not fair,” Zelenskyy continued.
All content created by the Daily Caller News Foundation, an independent and nonpartisan newswire service, is available without charge to any legitimate news publisher that can provide a large audience. All republished articles must include our logo, our reporter’s byline and their DCNF affiliation. For any questions about our guidelines or partnering with us, please contact [email protected].
