A furious Donald Trump has clashed with Volodymyr Zelensky, with the US president telling his Ukrainian counterpart to make a deal with Russia “or we are out”.
The pair interrupted each other repeatedly during heated exchange in a manner rarely seen in the White House.
At one point, an angry looking Trump said Zelensky was not thankful enough for US military and political support, and that he was “gambling with World War Three”.
Zelensky said there should be “no compromises” with Russian President Vladimir Putin – but Trump said Kyiv would have to make concessions to reach a peace deal with Russia.
The meeting was intended as a prelude to the two signing a minerals deal, which did not go ahead.
In what seemed like a public dressing-down of the Ukrainian president by Trump and US Vice-President JD Vance, the conversation began with Vance telling Zelensky that the war had to be ended through diplomacy.
Zelensky asked “what kind of diplomacy?” before being accused by the vice-president of being disrespectful.
The discussion then escalated quickly, as Trump and Vance accused Ukraine’s president of being ungrateful for three years’ of US support during the war with Russia, with Trump saying he was in no position to tell the US how it should feel.
Not long after the meeting and well ahead of the pre-planned schedule, Zelensky was seen leaving the White House in his official vehicle.
Meanwhile, Trump took to Truth Social, the social media platform he owns, to say “Zelensky disrespected the US in its cherished Oval Office”.
“We had a very meaningful meeting in the White House today,” he wrote. “Much was learned that could never be understood without conversation under such fire and pressure.
“It’s amazing what comes out through emotion, and I have determined that President Zelensky is not ready for Peace if America is involved, because he feels our involvement gives him a big advantage in negotiations. I don’t want advantage, I want PEACE.”
He added that Zelensky “can come back when he is ready for peace”.
The two leaders were expected to sign a deal giving Washington access to Ukrainian oil, gas and rare minerals, which was later confirmed not to have occurred.
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