President Trump made two glaring mix-ups Wednesday while speaking to the press at a NATO summit in Turkey.
“We had 111 missiles shot by the Islamic Republic of Japan. They were shot at the aircraft carrier,” Trump said, inventing a new government and confusing Japan with Iran.
Trump: "We had 11 missiles shot by the Islamic Republic of Japan" pic.twitter.com/FUOFLVZiKh
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) July 8, 2026
A few minutes later, sitting alongside Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy and pointing to him directly, Trump asked reporters, “You have a question for President Putin, please?” The assembled press chuckled, and some tried to correct Trump, who then tried to spin his mistake by claiming that’s what he meant.
“Do you have a question for President Putin, not Zelenskiy, Putin?” Trump said, again pointing to the Ukrainian leader on his right. “What would you like to ask him, because I’m going to ask him that question.”
Trump repeatedly refers to Zelenskyy as "President Putin" pic.twitter.com/zbTzfMc5EI
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) July 8, 2026
These kinds of mistakes are becoming all too common with Trump. By now, it’s obvious to anyone who regularly watches the president that he’s experiencing some kind of cognitive decline. Zelenskiy brushed it off because he’s seen it before and can’t afford to even mildly antagonize Trump, as he needs the president’s support for U.S. military aid. For the rest of us, though, it raises the question of whether Trump has the mental acuity to be president, and how long the octogenarian can keep going on like this.