Nikki Haley is being called out for her latest criticism on President Donald Trump.
Haley ran against Trump in the 2024 GOP presidential primary but ultimately dropped out and endorsed her former rival for the White House. Many pundits criticized her endorsement of Trump at the time, with many pointing out that she had spoken out against him during her campaign.
And on Tuesday, Haley appeared to criticize a U.S. proposal to end the war in Ukraine. The proposal was met with pushback from Ukraine since it suggested allowing Russia to keep control of occupied Ukraine territory.
“Rewarding an aggressor will only lead to more aggressive actions. Failing to stand up for democracies who are invaded will lead to more invasions of free countries. To reward Russia for bad behavior and punish Ukraine for fighting to defend itself would be a terrible injustice, America should know the difference between right and wrong and want to be on the right side of history,” Haley wrote on social media platform X.
She was immediately met with backlash from pundits online, with many blasting her for not calling out Trump by name. Many social media users also questioned why Haley endorsed Trump last year.
Former GOP Rep. Joe Walsh wrote in response: “Then Nikki, why did you vote for him? Why did you tell others to vote for him?”.
Political strategist Stuart Stevens wrote: “So why did you tell America to vote for Donald Trump? This is childish.”
Haley’s comment came before a planned meeting between U.S., British, French and Ukrainian diplomats to push forward a peace deal between Russia and Ukraine was cancelled at the last minute on Wednesday.
During similar talks last week in Paris, U.S. officials presented a proposal that included allowing Russia to keep control of occupied Ukrainian territory as part of a deal, according to a European official familiar with the matter.
Zelenskyy pushed back against that during an appearance in Kyiv, saying: “There is nothing to talk about — it is our land, the land of the Ukrainian people.”
Ukraine’s Deputy Prime Minister and Economy Minister, Yuliia Svyrydenko, said Wednesday: “Ukraine is ready to negotiate — but not to surrender.”
Russia, meanwhile, has effectively rejected a U.S. proposal for an immediate and full 30-day halt in the fighting by imposing far-reaching conditions.
Trump said repeatedly during his election campaign last year that he would be able to end the war “in 24 hours” upon taking office. But he has expressed frustration with Zelenskyy and Russian President Vladimir Putin.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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