ODESA, Ukraine — President Trump’s whiplash pronouncements in his push for peace in Ukraine are exhausting people here. Early hopes for a quickly negotiated end to the war have transformed into frustration and anger against an American president seen as favoring Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Ukrainians were cautiously optimistic when Trump was elected in November, with polls conducted at the end of the year showing that 54 percent of respondents viewed his victory as good for Ukraine. By March, that number dropped to 19 percent.

It followed a disastrous Oval Office meeting where Trump and Vice President Vance scolded Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky as being insufficiently grateful, and the Ukrainian leader questioned their strategy of diplomacy with Putin.

Trump’s latest remarks calling Putin “crazy” for launching a massive attack against Ukraine over the weekend wasn’t enough to shift the pessimism surrounding Trump.

On the streets of Odesa in Ukraine’s south, attitudes generally match the polls. With the war in its third year, people also reflected on their experiences surviving the invasion and at times occupation.

Here are some of their responses in interviews with The Hill, edited lightly for clarity.

What do you think of President Trump?

Valeria, 23, administrator of a nongovernmental organization (NGO) co-working space, Odesa

“During the election time, we had big hopes for him, before he became president, because he had strong speeches which we believed in [like ending the war in one day]. Especially me, I believed him. We believed, because first of all, America for us, it was like big hope, so that’s why we had this trust.”

“Then we start to understand that he tries to sit one ass on two........

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