WASHINGTON – US President Donald Trump said that Russia is in a stronger military position in its war with Ukraine and chided European leaders for what he characterised as excessive dialogue with scant results. 

Mr Trump made the comments in a wide-ranging interview with Politico published early on Dec 9.

Asked whether Ukraine has lost the war, Mr Trump pointed to the swaths of land that Russia’s military has occupied in the country.

“Russia has the upper hand. And they always did. They’re much bigger and stronger in that sense. I give the people of Ukraine and the military of Ukraine tremendous credit for the bravery and the fighting all of that. But at some point size will win, generally, and this is a massive size,” Mr Trump said. 

He alluded to the magnitude of Russia’s military as a likely inevitability to the country prevailing in the conflict.

“They lost territory long before I got here. They lost a whole strip of sea front a big sea front. They lost a lot of land and it is very good land that they lost. You certainly wouldn’t say that it's a victory,” Mr Trump said. 

Russia’s territorial gains in Ukraine came at an immense economic and human cost with more than 1.5 million troops killed or wounded on both sides, according to western estimates.

Still, almost four years since

starting his full-scale invasion

In recent weeks, the US has intensified efforts to forge a ceasefire between Russia and Ukraine.

Earlier this week, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said negotiators remain divided over territory. There also...