Former UK PM Sunak criticises Trump for his attitude towards Zelenskyy

Former UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has described US President Donald Trump's attitude towards Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy as "wrong".

As reported by Politico, speaking in his first interview since his defeat in the general election last July, Sunak criticised Trump's repeated attacks on Zelenskyy.

He said it was "very difficult" for him to watch the spat between the US and Ukrainian presidents at the White House on 28 February.

"As someone who has spent a lot of time with Volodymyr, been in Kyiv with him, has seen what he has had to go through for his country … to see him be called a dictator, told he started this war, for him to be treated that way was wrong," Sunak told the BBC.

Sunak, now a Conservative MP, visited Ukraine twice during his tenure as prime minister and was a key supporter of Kyiv. This policy has been continued under his successor, Labour's Keir Starmer.

Sunak also acknowledged that Europe must take greater responsibility for its own defence.

"We can’t expect America to bear any burden for our security if we are not prepared to make those sacrifices ourselves. What has happened over the last few weeks has been clarifying, and we have just had to be open and honest about that now," he said.

Media reports indicate that Starmer has helped persuade Zelenskyy to extend an olive branch to Trump after their public spat at the White House.

On Tuesday night, Trump gave a speech to Congress, mentioning an "important letter" from Zelenskyy and saying he "appreciated" it.