(AFP) – US President Donald Trump erupted at Volodymyr Zelensky on Friday, angrily sending the Ukrainian leader out of the White House after an extraordinary Oval Office meltdown because he was “not ready” for peace with Russia. The stunning row saw European leaders scramble to voice support for Ukraine, its ability to survive the Russian invasion thrown further into doubt by the abrupt exit, as Zelensky left without a minerals deal painted as a significant step towards a US-brokered truce.
Instead, an ugly clash blew up in the Oval Office where Trump and Vice President JD Vance shouted at Zelensky, accusing him of not being “thankful” for US help in the three-year war. Telling Zelensky that without US assistance Ukraine would have been conquered by Russia, Trump said the wartime leader was in no position to negotiate. “You don’t have the cards right now,” he said. “You’re either going to make a deal or we’re out, and if we’re out, you’ll fight it out and I don’t think it’s going to be pretty.”
Zelensky departed shortly after, with Trump posting on social media that “he can come back when he is ready for peace.” The minerals deal was not signed, and a joint press conference was canceled. US media reported that Zelensky had been told to leave by senior Trump officials. The president later accused his one-time ally of “overplaying his hand,” saying he wants the fighting to end “immediately” and accusing Zelensky of opposing a ceasefire. Zelensky, for his part, refused to apologize in a later interview with Fox News. Saying he respects Trump and the American people, he told Fox’s Brett Baier: “I’m not sure that we did something bad.”
– ‘Not alone’ –
US allies in Europe – increasingly worried that Trump will force Ukraine to effectively hand victory to Russian President Vladimir Putin – rushed to back Zelensky. “You are not alone,” Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said in a message of solidarity echoed across Western Europe. British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, fresh off his own visit to the White House, said he had spoken to both Trump and Zelensky by phone following the clash and vowed “unwavering support” for Kyiv. Far-right Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni called for a summit “without delay” between the United States, Europe, and their allies on Ukraine.
Trump and Vance are “doing Putin’s dirty work,” top US Senate Democrat Chuck Schumer posted. But Russia was delighted with the collapse in relations between Kyiv and Washington. Former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev called Zelensky an “insolent pig” who had received “a proper slap down in the Oval Office.” “How Trump and Vance held back from hitting that scumbag is a miracle of restraint,” a foreign ministry spokeswoman said. Trump’s Republican Party echoed the Russians in blaming Zelensky. “I can’t believe most Americans, after what they saw today, would want to be partners with Zelensky,” Senator Lindsey Graham said.
Ukraine appeared united behind Zelensky, with its army chief vowing to stand with him while his foreign minister praised his “bravery.”
– Compromise row –
The meltdown came after Trump said Ukraine will have to make “compromises” in a truce with Russia, which has occupied swaths of the country. Zelensky said there should be “no compromises with a killer on our territory.” After he pointed out that previous peace efforts had failed to deter Russian aggression, Vance angrily interrupted and called him “disrespectful.” The session then boiled over into Trump and Vance loudly berating the Ukrainian leader in front of the world’s media.
– Trump’s ‘numerous’ Putin calls –
Trump has alarmed Kyiv and European allies with his abrupt U-turn in US policy, casting himself as a mediator between Putin and Zelensky and refusing to condemn the Russian invasion. He said in the Oval Office that he had “spoken on numerous occasions” to Putin – more than has been publicly reported. And speaking before the shouting match, Trump told Zelensky that a truce is “fairly close.” The proposed minerals deal was to give Washington financial benefits for helping Ukraine in a truce, even if Trump has repeatedly refused to commit any US military force to back up European peacekeepers. Trump called Zelensky a “dictator” last week and has said he trusts Putin to “keep his word” over a ceasefire.
Meanwhile, Russia’s assault on Ukraine continued. Russian infantry were on Friday storming the Ukrainian border from the Russian region of Kursk, near areas of the region that were seized last summer by Ukrainian forces, Kyiv said Friday.
burs-st/acb – Danny Kemp and Sebastian Smith
© 2024 AFP
