Zelenskyy turns Trump's call for a new leader back on him with a 60-day ceasefire challenge

KYIV, UKRAINE: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy fired back at President Donald Trump on Sunday, October 11, for demanding a leadership change in Ukraine after Zelenskyy criticized Trump’s diesel deal with Russia.

Zelenskyy requested that the war be stopped for 60 days so he could hold an election in his country to fulfill Trump’s demand that the leadership should be changed.

Volodymyr Zelenskyy says critics 'can't find a key' to stop Vladimir Putin

Zelenskyy has retaliated against those demanding his removal from the leadership, saying they “can’t find a key [for] how to stop” Russian President Vladimir Putin.

ABC News' Jonathan Karl asked Zelenskyy on 'This Week' about President Trump’s criticism. Trump told reporters on Saturday that Ukraine should “get a new leader who can make a deal” after the Ukrainian president denounced the US-Russia diesel deal.

Karl also referred to Tesla CEO Elon Musk, who recently suggested that Zelenskyy has “gone too far.”

“These people can’t find a key how to stop Putin,” Zelenskyy replied. "Because it’s more difficult to stop Putin than to pressure others. Because it’s more simple to speak about the prices and connect it with Ukraine."

Zelenskyy said oil prices have risen because of the Iran war and the effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz. His comments go against Trump’s claims that the Russia-Ukraine war, rather than the Iran conflict, is responsible for rising oil prices.

“And if we want to speak with people fairly, if we want to be clear, if we want to speak with our nations openly, we have to stop –– I mean, people have to hear reality,” Zelenskyy added. “Don’t play games with people.”

Zelenskyy offers elections in exchange for 60-day truce

During the interview, Zelenskyy told the host that it would be challenging to hold an election in the existing situation of war and demanded that Russia stop attacking Ukraine for 60 days so it can hold secure elections, as Trump wants.

“On this question, I know that Putin wanted very much to change the president in Ukraine,” he said.

“I understand it. And if President Trump really wants to have some changes in –– during elections, I also shared it with his team. So please tell Putin: Give us two months, 60 days off. Total ceasefire, 60 days, and we will organize elections. Of course, we will be ready for any choice of our people, exactly Ukrainian people,” he continued.

“OK, if they want energy ceasefire, we are open for this,” Zelenskyy told Karl. “Don’t attack us. Don’t kill our children. We will stop attack your diesel. And I think it’s fair, fair deal.”

Tensions flared between Trump and Zelenskyy after the US president announced a new deal permitting Russia to supply 300,000 tons of diesel to the US and the global marketplace. Zelenskyy called it a “birthday gift” to Putin to “kill us, kill our children.”

Trump says Ukraine and Russia agreed to an energy ceasefire

Shortly after Zelenskyy’s interview aired, Trump announced that Russia and Ukraine had agreed to an energy ceasefire, after weeks of strikes on each other’s energy infrastructure.

“Both parties have agreed,” Trump wrote on Truth Social. “Do not break it!”

However, Zelenskyy told Axios that the agreement was “news to me.” Trump had made a similar announcement in mid-September, but both countries continued their attacks.