Did U.S. President Donald Trump call his Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelenskyy "a dictator"? Yes, that's true: Trump used the word "dictator" to describe Zelenskyy in a February 19, 2025, Truth Social post. Despite that fact, Trump later attempted to cast doubt on his earlier description.

During a joint press appearance featuring Trump and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer in the Oval Office on February 27, 2025, a reporter asked Trump:

Mr. President, do still think that Mr. Zelenskyy is a dictator?

After a brief pause, Trump replied (at the 24:42 mark):

Did I say that? I can't believe I said that. Next question.

This is how the exchange played out:

Trump's response to the reporter cast doubt on the contents of his previous statements.

However, Trump did indeed use the word "dictator" to describe to the Ukrainian president in a post (archived here) published on Truth Social on February 19, 2025. In part, the entry read:

A Dictator without Elections, Zelenskyy better move fast or he is not going to have a Country left.

Screenshot 2025-02-28 at 9.56.38 AM.png

(Source: Truth Social screenshot taken on Fri Feb 28 14:56:38 2025 UTC)

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Stories mentioning Volodymyr Zelenskyy are here.