- Category
- War in Ukraine
“Let Ukrainians Do What They’ve Been Very Good At”: Trump’s Ex-Envoy Backs Strikes on Russia
Prefer U24 Media on Google
- Authors
![Photo of Cyril Barabaltchouk]( "Photo of Cyril Barabaltchouk")
-72b63a4e0c8c475ad81fe3eed3f63729.jpeg "Photo of Cyril Barabaltchouk")
Ukraine should be free to strike targets inside Russia in response to Moscow’s war, former US special envoy for Ukraine Keith Kellogg told Bloomberg on October 12.
Kellogg, a retired lieutenant general who served as President Donald Trump’s special envoy for Ukraine until the end of 2025, argued that Kyiv should not allow Russia to maintain safe areas from which it can continue attacks.
We bring you stories from the ground. Your support keeps our team in the field.
Invoking his experience during the Vietnam War, Kellogg stated that one should not permit “sanctuaries” for an opponent during a conflict.
“Let Ukrainians do what they’ve been very good at,” Kellogg told Bloomberg Television on the sidelines of the Warsaw Security Forum.
He noted that Russia had repeatedly struck Ukraine’s energy infrastructure and argued that Kyiv should be allowed to hit targets inside Russia as it considers necessary.
Kellogg also said that Russia was not winning the war and was instead prolonging it.
His remarks contrast with Trump’s recent call for Ukraine to halt strikes on Russian oil refineries, a campaign Bloomberg described as one of Kyiv’s most effective ways of weakening a key source of funding for Russia’s full-scale invasion.
-1a31bfc43bccf28783f77cbb0aafc81f.jpg)
Kellogg dismissed Trump’s recent comments, including his suggestion that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy should consider stepping aside, as “noise.”
“I think what’s happening is a couple of world leaders—I think they are basically kind of alike,” Kellogg stated. “You know, they’re both kind of stubborn, they both speak their mind.”
The latest dispute followed Trump’s deal with the Russian leader, Vladimir Putin, to release Russian diesel onto global markets ahead of the November 3 US midterm elections.
Kellogg argued that the arrangement would not significantly affect the market and was not favorable to Putin.
“He’s trying to capitalize on elections coming up in the US, he’s trying to capitalize on President Trump right now,” Kellogg stated. “And most people see through it.”
Kellogg also described Putin as operating from a position of weakness, citing estimates that Russia had suffered between 1.2 million and 1.5 million casualties during the war, Bloomberg reported.
“The rhetoric will kind of take care of itself,” Kellogg stated. “Look at what’s happening on the ground.”
Days earlier, Zelenskyy stated that Ukraine would halt strikes on Russian oil refineries only if Moscow stopped attacking Ukrainian energy infrastructure. He rejected a unilateral pause and insisted that any de-escalation be reciprocal and backed by guarantees.
Discuss this article:
