The President of the United States has again confused the Ukrainian President, Volodymyr Zelensky, with Russian President Vladimir Putin – but it was not there. During a press conference, Donald Trump also traded Iran with Japan.
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News to Minutes
O President of the United States changed again during the NATO summit press conference this Wednesday, confusing Zelensky with Putin (again) and Iran… with Japan.
During statements to journalists in Ankara, Turkey, alongside the Ukrainian president, Donald Trump answered questions about the war in Ukraine that has lasted for more than four years, equating the conflict to “two kids in the park”.
“ We have two kids in the park and they don’t like each other and start fighting,” Trump explained. “Sometimes we have to let them fight. Let’s see it’s tough. Fighting is hard “, stressed.
The US Head of State also praised the work that has been carried out by Volodymyr Zelensky, stressing that both the Ukrainian President and the Russian want to “resolve the matter”.
And then he questioned, pointing to Zelensky: “Does anyone have any questions for Putin?”
As he realized the error (also due to the comments of journalists), Trump recovered quickly, showing no signs that he had actually switched presidents.
“No, it’s not [a question] for Zelensky. [To] Putin”, reiterated. “What do you want to ask him? Because I will ask you that question”, he said.
See the moment below:
Trump repetatedly refills to Zelenskyy as “President Putin” pic.twitter. with/zbTzfMc5EI
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) July 8, 2026
The conference resumed its course, without much trouble, but Donald Trump was confused again. This time, trading Iran for Japan, after being asked whether it would grant Ukraine a licence to produce its own Patriot interceptor missiles.
“It’s a defensive weapon, which I prefer to an offensive weapon. It is the best”, Trump replied. “We have an aircraft carrier, which is one of the most beautiful in the world. It’s one of the biggest, the Abraham Lincoln. Two months ago we were targeted by 111 missiles launched by the Islamic Republic of Japan. They were shot at the carrier for about an hour. 111 missiles aimed at a very expensive ship, and all these missiles were shot down, mostly by Patriot missiles, but also by other means,” he said.
You can see the moment in the publication below:
Trump: “We had 11 missiles shot by the Islamic Republic of Japan” pic.twitter. with/FUOFLVZiKh
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) July 8, 2026
It should be noted that Japan does not even have an official religion, and the most common among its inhabitants are Shinto and Buddhism. In fact, Islam will be among religions with fewer faiths in Japan.
Iran, on the other hand, is officially known as the Islamic Republic of Iran and, in fact, has been in conflict with the United States since the end of February.