Trump Calls Russia’s Strike on Sumy a ‘Mistake’

President Trump has said Russia’s deadly missile attack on the Ukrainian city of Sumy was “a mistake,” calling it a “horrible thing” even as members of his administration went further with condemnation that served as a rare critique of Moscow while the White House is pushing for a cease-fire.

Two ballistic missiles hit the center of Sumy on Sunday morning, killing at least 34 people and injuring more than 100. The attack was the second in just over a week to cause large numbers of civilian casualties in Ukraine, which Kyiv has said shows that the Moscow is not truly interested in stopping the fighting despite U.S.-led negotiations for a truce.

“I think it was terrible. And I was told they made a mistake. But I think it’s a horrible thing,” Mr. Trump said about the Sumy attack when he was aboard Air Force One on Sunday.

It was not immediately clear what Mr. Trump meant when he said he had been “told” Russia had “made a mistake” — a formulation that could also be interpreted as an attempt to make excuses for Moscow. Mr. Trump has generally avoided criticizing President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia since taking office in January.

Some top officials in the Trump administration were more explicit. Keith Kellogg, a retired U.S. general and Mr. Trump’s special envoy for Ukraine, said that Russian forces had crossed “any line of decency” by targeting civilians in Sumy. Secretary of State Marco Rubio also condemned what he described as a “horrifying Russian missile attack on Sumy.”

“This is a tragic reminder of why President Trump and his Administration are putting so much time and effort into trying to end this war and achieve durable peace,” Mr. Rubio wrote on social media.

The condemnations came as the U.S. efforts to broker a cease-fire have failed to yield results. In recent days, White House officials have said that Russia was running out of time to convince the Trump administration that it is serious about striking a peace deal — and not just playing for time.

Mr. Zelensky, along with other top Ukrainian officials, has said that Russia is slow-walking the negotiations because it has no interest in halting the fighting while its army retains the advantage on the battlefield.

In an interview broadcast on Sunday but recorded before the attack on Sumy, Mr. Zelensky invited Mr. Trump to Ukraine to witness the realities of the war firsthand.

“Come, look, and then let’s move with a plan on how to finish the war. You will understand with whom you have a deal. You will understand what Putin did,” Mr. Zelensky told “60 Minutes” on CBS.

Mr. Zelensky was speaking with the broadcaster from Kryvyi Rih, his home city, where a Russian missile strike killed 19 people, including nine children, earlier this month.

“We respect your position,” he added, apparently a reference to Mr. Trump’s efforts to restore ties with Russia. “But, please, before making any decisions or plans for negotiations, come to see the people, civilians, warriors, hospitals, churches, children destroyed or dead.”

Ukrainian officials said that Russian missiles hit Sumy, just 18 miles from the Russian border, as many people were out on the streets celebrating Palm Sunday, a Christian holiday widely observed in Ukraine. Videos of the aftermath showed scenes of devastation, with bloodied bodies lying motionless in the street and charred cars.

“There was a girl, maybe 14 years old — dead. A young woman — I won’t even describe the injuries, they were horrific. Another middle-aged woman had her jaw torn off,” said Volodymyr Boiko, a 69-year-old resident of Sumy who was in a bus hit by the blast wave. He suffered cuts to his face from flying shards.

The strike came just two days after Mr. Trump’s special envoy, Steve Witkoff, met with Mr. Putin in St. Petersburg to discuss a potential cease-fire.

The timing led some in Ukraine to suggest that Mr. Trump’s attempts to re-engage with Russia were only emboldening the Kremlin to continue its aggression. On Sunday, memes proliferated on Ukrainian social media showing Mr. Witkoff shaking Mr. Putin’s hand with the carnage in Sumy as a backdrop.

In his nightly address on Sunday, Mr. Zelensky noted that it had been two months since Russia had refused to agree to the unconditional cease-fire that Ukraine had accepted with U.S. urging.

“They are not afraid. That’s why they keep launching ballistic missiles,” he said. “Only pressure — only decisive action — can change this.”