Republican Senator from Alabama Tommy Tuberville has blasted Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky for trying to “lure NATO” into their war with Russia, given Ukraine knows it is ‘losing’ the over three-year long conflict.

“There is no doubt, because he cannot win this war on his own. He knows he’s losing,” Tuberville said in Sunday remarks while being interviewed on John Catsimatidis’s radio show “Cats Roundtable” – as reported in The Hill.

While the Trump administration, and particularly Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, long ago made clear that Ukraine will never join NATO, some European nations have continued to push the initiative.

Tuberville while commenting on Ukraine’s brazen ‘Operation Spider’s Web’ which destroyed Russian strategic bombers and other military aircraft a week ago, described of Ukrainian forces:

“They drove trucks 2,000 miles into Russia. They had drones that were covered up in the backs of these trucks. They got close to the targets, opened up these trucks, the drones flew out and destroyed somewhere around 40 major airplanes that Russia uses in their nuclear arsenal.”

He seemed to present this as one rare and limited success. “It was devastating. Then again, both sides are at fault. Let’s get this thing over with. And President Trump is the one who can get this done,” he continued.

Russian state media also picked up on the provocative comments: “Hundred per cent, there is no doubt, ’cause he [Zelenskyy] can’t win this war on his own. He knows he is losing,” Tuberville said in an interview with the WABC broadcaster on Sunday, when asked if the Ukrainian president is trying to lure NATO into the conflict, Sputnik summarized.

Tuberville further echoed some prior criticisms issued first by Trump: “Zelensky is a dictator, and he has created all sorts of problems. We’ve got a lot of money that’s been missing. No telling where it’s gone…,” the Alabama Senator said.

“I think both of these [nations] have lost close to 500,000 to 700,000 people. It’s devastating to the world,” he added.

While President Trump seems more and more willing to cease pushing the warring sides to the negotiating table, amid growing frustration, there’s been no mention of halting arms flows to Kiev.

The US administration now frames these arms transfers as ‘defensive’ in nature, but it’s also clear that Ukrainian forces are heavily reliant on this Western aid as they mount attacks deep inside Russia.

Without it, Ukrainian front lines would probably rapidly recede, and the Zelensky government would be quickly placed in a situation where it would need to sign on to territorial concessions. But so far, the Ukrainian leader has refused to contemplate giving up land, and is even vocally resistant to ceding Crimea.