'No paper bears': Kremlin mocks Trump’s ‘paper tiger’ jibe at Russia

Kremlin claws back after Trump brands Russia a 'paper tiger.'

The Kremlin shot back at US President Donald Trump on Wednesday with a sharp quip: Russia may face economic challenges, but it’s no 'paper tiger.'

“Russia is not a tiger. Russia is more often associated with a bear. There are no such things as paper bears. Russia is a real bear,” Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov told RBK radio.

The remark was a direct response to Trump’s claim a day earlier that Russia’s struggles in Ukraine exposed it as a weak power in “BIG Economic trouble.”

Trump’s fresh broadside

Trump, after meeting Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on the sidelines of the UN conference, declared Ukraine had a real chance to reclaim all its territory with EU and NATO support.

“Russia has been fighting aimlessly for three and a half years a war that should have taken a real military power less than a week to win,” Trump posted on Truth Social. “This is making them look like a paper tiger.”

He doubled down by urging Kyiv to act now: “Ukraine could take back their country in its original form and, who knows, maybe even go further than that!”

From concessions to confrontation

The 'paper tiger' rhetoric marked a clear shift for Trump. Not long ago, he had suggested Ukraine might have to make territorial compromises. Now, his tone is bluntly confrontational, presenting Russia as weakened and urging Ukraine to press forward.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio echoed that shift at the UN Security Council, hinting Washington was preparing alternatives if Moscow refused peace. “The United States remains as committed as ever to a peaceful resolution,” he said, but warned that “there will come a moment when we must conclude Russia has no interest in peace.”

Russia shrugs off the insult

Peskov maintained that Russia’s economy was holding up despite sanctions and war expenses. “Russia maintains its macroeconomic stability. Yes, there are problems in some sectors, but stability remains,” he said.

Russia’s Deputy UN Ambassador Dmitry Polyanskiy also downplayed Trump’s words: “Don’t get so excited about every tweet.”