ウクライナ国民はゼレンスキー氏を「嫌悪」 マスク氏、トランプ氏を擁護

【ワシントンＡＦＰ＝時事】米実業家のイーロン・マスク氏は２０日、ウクライナのウォロディミル・ゼレンスキー大統領が自国民から「嫌悪されている」と発言し、ドナルド・トランプ米大統領がウクライナ紛争の終結に向けた協議にゼレンスキー氏を含めなかったのは正しかったと述べた。（写真は、米メリーランド州オクソンヒルで開催中の保守政治行動会議〈ＣＰＡＣ〉年次総会で、チェーンソーを持つイーロン・マスク氏〈左〉）
　電気自動車（ＥＶ）大手テスラおよび宇宙開発企業スペースＸの最高経営責任者（ＣＥＯ）であるマスク氏は、自身が所有するＸ（旧ツイッター）でゼレンスキー氏を激しく批判。証拠を示さずに、同氏が「ウクライナ兵の死を利用した大規模な汚職組織」を運営していると主張した。
　さらに、「ゼレンスキー氏はすべてのウクライナメディアを掌握しているにもかかわらず、大統領選で大敗することが分かっていたため、選挙を中止した。実際、彼はウクライナ国民から嫌悪されている」と続けた。
　トランプ氏は先に、ゼレンスキー氏の支持率が非常に低いとする虚偽の主張をし、選挙の実施を求めた。マスク氏はこの発言を擁護し、その過程でウクライナに関するロシア側の主張を繰り返した。
　一方、同日後に開催された保守政治行動会議（ＣＰＡＣ）に参加したマスク氏は、トランプ氏がウクライナ紛争について「非常に現実的」な見方をしていると評価。「彼は共感力に富み、本当に気にかけている」と述べ、批判的な姿勢をやや和らげた。【翻訳編集ＡＦＰＢＢＮｅｗｓ】
〔ＡＦＰ＝時事〕（2025/02/21-18:35）

Elon Musk attacked Volodymyr Zelensky Thursday, saying Ukrainians despised their president and that US leader Donald Trump was right to leave him out of talks with Russia aimed at ending the Ukraine war.
The comments by the tech tycoon, who is leading Trump's huge US government overhaul, came as the White House told Zelensky to stop insults against Trump and sign a minerals deal with Washington.
SpaceX and Tesla boss Musk launched into a tirade against Zelensky on his X social network, accusing him without evidence of running a massive graft machine feeding off the dead bodies of Ukrainian soldiers.
He knows he would lose in a landslide, despite having seized control of ALL Ukrainian media, so he canceled the election. In reality, he is despised by the people of Ukraine, Musk wrote.
The world's richest person was supporting Trump, who has given falsely low figures for Zelensky's approval ratings and pushed for him to hold elections -- and in the process echoing the Kremlin's talking points on Ukraine.
Musk struck a calmer tone at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) later Thursday, saying that Trump was so pragmatic about the Ukraine war.
The president has a lot of empathy. He really cares, said Musk.
Zelensky was elected in 2019 for a five-year term but Ukraine has postponed elections due to martial law imposed following Russia's 2022 invasion of its pro-Western neighbor.
Trump's National Security Advisor Mike Waltz separately urged Zelensky to cool his criticism of Trump amid a growing war of words with the US president.
Some of the rhetoric coming out of Kyiv, frankly, and insults to President Trump were unacceptable, Waltz told a briefing at the White House to mark Trump's first month in office.
Trump accused Ukraine on Tuesday of having started the war, and doubled down on Wednesday by branding Zelensky a dictator without elections.
- 'Tone it down' -
Zelensky has complained at being left out of US talks with Russia aimed at ending the war, following Trump's shock phone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin last week.
He has also rejected a deal that would give the US access to vast amounts of Ukrainian natural resources as the new president insists on getting a return on American aid.
Zelensky, who met US special envoy Keith Kellogg in Kyiv on Thursday, has warned that Trump is living in a Russian disinformation bubble.
Waltz pushed Ukraine to accept the minerals deal, saying it was a historic opportunity... for America to co-invest with Ukraine in their minerals.
But he skirted the question when asked who he thought was responsible for the war, and whether he viewed Putin as a dictator.
Trump was focused on the fighting and moving forward, and we could argue all day long about what's happened in the past, Waltz said.
Earlier Waltz had told Fox News that the Ukrainians need to tone it down and take a hard look and sign that deal.
He also denied that Ukraine has been cut out of Trump's talks with Russia over ending the war, insisting that there was plenty of engagement and dialogue with Kyiv as well as European allies.
This is a common sense plan. They may not like it but we're going to drive it forward and everybody will stop squawking when the fighting ends, Waltz said.
French President Emmanuel Macron will visit the White House on Monday followed by British Prime Minister Keir Starmer on Thursday, Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt told the briefing.
Both leaders have suggested sending troops to Ukraine as peacekeepers in the event of a deal.
We welcome that, Waltz told the briefing, before adding that Washington had made it clear for years, decades even that it could not bear the financial burden for defending Europe.
It's time for our European allies to step up, he added.