Sep 24, 2025 - Politics & Policy

"Russia is a real bear": Kremlin responds to Trump's Ukraine comments

Rebecca Falconer

A balding Russian President Vladimir Putin (R), wearing a black jacket, white shirt and blue tie with white checks on it, talks to a gray-haired Russian Presidential Press Secretary Dmitry Peskov, wearing a black jacket, white shirt and red tie with white checks on it. — Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov (left) and Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow, Russia, last year. Photo: Contributor/Getty Images

The Kremlin responded Wednesday to President Trump's assertion this week that Ukraine can win the war against Russia and labeling Putin's military "a paper tiger."

The big picture: Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov suggested during a Russian radio interview that Trump's abrupt rhetoric shift was due to him meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in New York.

He also suggested that Trump's push for Europe to ditch Russian fuels was motivated to increase U.S. energy sales.

What he's saying: "Russia is hardly a tiger," Peskov told RBC Radio, per a Moscow Times translation.

"It's more often associated with a bear. And there's no such thing as a paper bear. Russia is a real bear," said Peskov, who claimed that Putin's forces had "no alternative" but to continue with their war on Ukraine.
On energy, Peskov said "the simplest thing is to force the whole world to buy more expensive American oil and more expensive American liquefied gas," adding: "And without resorting to any elaborate diplomatic maneuvers, that's essentially what he is doing."

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"Russia is a real bear": Kremlin responds to Trump's Ukraine comments

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