Mint Hill, North Carolina - Donald Trump has accused Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky of refusing to strike a deal with Moscow to end Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

"We continue to give billions of dollars to a man who refuses to make a deal," Trump said at a campaign rally in North Carolina.

"So many dead people, any deal, even the worst deal, would have been better than what we have right now," the former US president said.

"You have a country that has been obliterated, not possible to be rebuilt," Trump continued, referring to the situation in Ukraine. "It will take hundreds of years to rebuild it. There's not enough money to rebuild it if the whole world got together."

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Trump criticized President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris for their ongoing support of Ukraine, suggesting he would reverse course if re-elected in November.

"They're not going to be satisfied until they send American kids," he claimed, "We're not going to have our soldiers die across the ocean."

Biden was set to receive Zelensky at the White House on Thursday, after announcing a new multi-billion-dollar "surge" in military aid. The Ukrainian leader intends to pitch his "victory plan" for defeating Russia. He is also set to meet lawmakers in the US Congress.

Zelensky had also planned to meet with Trump during his time in the US. However, Politico reported that this was now considered unlikely.