US President Donald Trump said Tuesday that Ukraine could win back all of its territory from Russia — and even go further — in a major pivot after meeting President Volodymyr Zelensky.The astonishing turnaround came shortly after Trump also called for NATO countries to shoot down any Russian jets that violate their airspace. “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 said on his Truth Social network after his talks with Zelensky.Trump also said Russia was “fighting aimlessly” after three years of war, in an apparent change of heart just over a month after he met Russian President Vladimir Putin in Alaska.The US president has previously shown lukewarm support for Zelensky, with whom he had a huge televised Oval Office bust-up in February during which he told the Ukrainian “you don’t have the cards” to win.But in his social media post on Tuesday, Trump dismissed Russia as a “paper tiger,” saying that “Putin and Russia are in BIG Economic trouble, and this is the time for Ukraine to act.””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?” Trump wrote.He added that as Russia’s economy gets worse “Ukraine would be able to take back their Country in its original form and, who knows, maybe even go further than that!”- ‘Escalation trap’ -During his meeting at with Zelensky on the margins of the UN General Assembly, Trump said he had “great respect for the fight that Ukraine is putting up. It’s pretty amazing actually.”Zelensky thanked Trump for his “personal efforts to stop this war” and echoed Trump’s call for European countries to stop buying Russian oil.And after a series of recent incursions by Russian fighter jets and drones that have rattled Washington’s NATO allies in Europe, Trump said they would be within their rights to act.”Yes I do,” Trump said when a reporter asked if NATO countries should shoot down Russian aircraft if they enter their airspace.Trump however deflected questions about whether he believed Russian leader Vladimir Putin was still a reliable negotiating partner despite Moscow’s continued attacks on Ukraine.”I’ll let you know in about a month from now, okay?” Trump said when asked if he still trusted Putin.The 79-year-old Republican has previously, and repeatedly, given deadlines of two weeks to make a decision on whether to take steps including fresh sanctions against Russia.Tensions between Russia and Europe over Ukraine have escalated with the recent spate of aerial violations. NATO scrambled jets after three Russian MiG-31 fighters on Friday breached Estonian airspace for some 12 minutes, prompting Estonia to call for a meeting of the UN Security Council and talks with NATO allies.Fellow NATO member Poland said earlier this month that Russian drones had repeatedly violated its airspace during an attack on Ukraine, in what Warsaw called an “act of aggression.”Germany reacted cautiously to Trump’s comments on shooting down Russian planes, highlighting the need to avoid an “escalation trap.””Level-headedness is not cowardice and not fear, but a responsibility towards your own country and towards peace in Europe,” German defence minister Boris Pistorius said Tuesday.EU chief Ursula von der Leyen said Tuesday she discussed Russia’s airspace violations with Trump at the UN, and agreed on the need to cut Moscow’s energy revenues.

US President Donald Trump has repeatedly said he ended seven wars since returning to the White House earlier this year, making the inaccurate claim again during a Tuesday speech at the UN General Assembly.”In a period of just seven months, I have ended seven unendable wars,” Trump said.Below, AFP examines the US president’s mixed record on the conflicts between the seven pairs of countries he named in his UN speech.- Cambodia and Thailand -Five days of hostilities between Cambodia and Thailand left dozens dead in July after a territorial dispute boiled over into cross-border combat.A truce began after phone calls from Trump, as well as mediation from Malaysia’s prime minister — chair of the ASEAN regional bloc — and a delegation of Chinese negotiators.Cambodia’s prime minister subsequently said he nominated Trump for the Nobel Peace Prize, crediting the US president with “visionary and innovative diplomacy.”- Kosovo and Serbia -Serbia and Kosovo have not signed a final peace treaty, and NATO-led peacekeeping forces have been stationed in the latter area since the end of the 1998-1999 war between ethnic Albanian guerillas and Serbian forces.Kosovo declared independence in 2008 — a move that Belgrade has not recognized.While Trump did not forge a peace between Kosovo and Serbia, his administration did broker an economic normalization agreement between them during his first term.- Congo and Rwanda -Rwanda and Democratic Republic of Congo signed a peace accord in late June, but intense clashes between Rwandan-backed anti-government M23 fighters and Congolese forces have taken place in the eastern part of the country despite the agreement, which Trump took credit for at the time.The M23 and the Congolese army accused each other in weekend statements of “trampling” on peace efforts or “violating” the accord’s principles.- Pakistan and India -India and Pakistan fought an intense four-day conflict in May that left more than 70 people dead on both sides before Trump announced a ceasefire between the nuclear-armed neighbors.But Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi said in late July that no world leader had pushed his country to stop fighting Pakistan, without specifically naming Trump.The government of Pakistan, however, has said it would recommend Trump for the 2026 Nobel Peace Prize “in recognition of his decisive diplomatic intervention and pivotal leadership” during the conflict.- Israel and Iran -Israel launched an unprecedented 12-day air campaign targeting Iranian nuclear sites, scientists and top military brass in June in a bid to end the country’s nuclear program — an effort later joined by Washington’s forces, which carried out strikes on three nuclear sites as well.Trump announced a ceasefire between Israel and Iran — which he later accused both countries of violating.He worked to maintain it, seeking to turn around Israeli planes that were in the air, while the Israeli premier’s office said the country had “refrained from further strikes” after a call from Trump.- Egypt and Ethiopia -Tensions between Ethiopia and its downstream neighbor Egypt are heightened over the former country’s inauguration of a massive dam earlier this month.Egypt, dependent on the Nile for 97 percent of its water, has long decried the project, with President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi calling it an “existential threat” to the country’s water security.During his first term in office, Trump publicly mused that Egypt could bomb the dam — leading Ethiopia to accuse the then US leader of trying to provoke a war.Trump has demanded credit for “keeping peace” between Egypt and Ethiopia, but he has not ended a war between them.- Armenia and Azerbaijan -Armenia and Azerbaijan have feuded for decades over their border and the status of ethnic enclaves within each other’s territories, and went to war twice over the disputed Karabakh region, which Azerbaijan recaptured from Armenian forces in 2023.Both Armenia and Azerbaijan have praised US efforts to settle the conflict, and Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev has said he would back Trump’s nomination for the Nobel Peace Prize.- Other conflicts -Trump’s efforts to broker a peace in Gaza have been unsuccessful and he has singularly failed to end the conflict in Ukraine — a war he had boasted he could resolve in a single day once he became president.