Ukraine Affirms No Link To Donald Trump's Shooting Attempt

JAKARTA - Kyiv authorities on Monday denied any connection with the suspect who attempted to shoot former US president Donald Trump, after being revealed when he was caught, he was a Ukrainian supporter who said he wanted to recruit foreign volunteers to fight there.

Trump survived Sunday, after the Secret Service thwarted what the FBI called an attempt to kill the second presidential candidate from the Republican Party in two months, arresting an armed man who was carrying a rifle to Trump's golf course.

Media interviews and social media posts show suspect Ryan Routh (58) is reportedly a loyal Ukrainian supporter who has traveled there after the 2022 Russian invasion.

Ukrainian officials said they had nothing to do with Routh, accusing Moscow of using the relationship for propaganda purposes.

Evidence of Routh's support for Ukraine quickly emerged following Sunday's incident, including footage of himself in 2022 speaking to74mania in Kyiv, where he set up a tent with flags of countries representing volunteers killed in Ukraine.

He said he intended to help recruit foreign fighters, after being rejected because they were too old to volunteer.

"Many other conflicts are gray but this conflict is clearly black and white. It's about goodness versus evil," Routh said, showing emotion as he pleaded to the camera wearing a shirt with the American flag symbol.

"If the government will not send their official military, then we, civilians, must take over."

The New York Times reported that they had also interviewed Routh, in 2023, when Routh said he was trying to recruit former fighters from Afghanistan to be brought to Ukraine.

Separately, Ukrainian officials said they had nothing to do with him.

Routh "was never part of, related to, or related to the International Legion in any capacity," a unit that includes foreign volunteers for Ukrainian forces told Reuters.

An army official told CNN Routh had sent an email offering to recruit foreign volunteers, but the Ukrainian military took it "independent" and did not take the offer seriously.

"We didn't even answer. There was nothing to answer about. He was never part of the Legion and didn't cooperate with us in any way," Oleksandr Shaguri, an Army Command Foreigner Coordination Department officer, told CNN.

In Moscow, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov appears to associate the apparent effort with Washington's support for Ukraine.

"It's not us who should think, but US intelligence agencies who should think. After all, playing with fire has consequences," Peskov said when asked about the assassination attempt.

Ukraine's Head of Disinformation Management Center, Andriy Kovalenko, said Moscow "used another assassination attempt against Trump to fight Ukraine in the field of information".

"The enemy will launch a number of conspiracy theories about the 'track of Ukraine'. Of course, all of this is a lie," he added.