US President Donald Trump has made a dramatic U-turn on the Russia-Ukraine war, declaring that Kyiv can “win all of Ukraine back in its original form.”

Trump, who previously suggested Ukraine might have to give up land to Russia in a peace deal, said the war-torn country could now reclaim its original borders with the backing of Europe and NATO.

The US leader made the comments in a post on his Truth Social platform after holding talks with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York.

According to Trump, Russia’s economy is under severe strain, creating the “right time” for Ukraine to act.

“Putin and Russia are in BIG Economic trouble, and this is the time for Ukraine to act,” he wrote, branding Russia a “paper tiger.”

Zelensky welcomed what he described as a “big shift” in Trump’s position. Speaking with reporters at the UN, the Ukrainian leader said Washington had also indicated willingness to provide security guarantees after the war, although no specific details were given.

On Tuesday, Trump also stirred global debate when he suggested NATO countries should shoot down Russian planesviolating their airspace. His comments followed recent incidents involving Russian fighter jets and drones in Estonia, Poland, and Romania.

“NATO has stepped up,” Trump added, praising the alliance’s pledge to boost defence spending to 5% of GDP by 2035.

The shift comes months after Trump told Zelensky in February that Ukraine did “not have the cards” to defeat Russia in a war of attrition. In August, during talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Alaska, Trump even floated a proposal for Ukraine to surrender Donetsk and Luhansk in exchange for a frozen front line — an idea Zelensky firmly rejected.

While Trump stopped short of promising an unlimited US commitment to Ukraine, he ended his post by assuring that Washington would keep selling arms to NATO, which could then be passed to Kyiv.

Observers say the move highlights Trump’s trademark unpredictability in foreign policy and may be aimed at shaking up stalled peace negotiations.