Zelensky tells Fox News his relationship with Trump can still be salvaged despite disastrous White House meeting
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Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky remains hopeful he can salvage his relationship with Donald Trump, after a meeting intended to cement a U.S.-Ukraine minerals deal descended into members of the Republican administration berating the visiting leader in front of news cameras.
“Yes, of course,” Zelensky said Friday in an interview with Fox News, touting the ties between the people of America and Ukraine. “It’s more than just two presidents.”
“This is the most important—and of course [we’re] thankful to the president and to Congress—but first of all to your people,” Zelensky continued. “Your people helped to save our people.”
Zelensky will have his work cut out for him.
After the Oval Office blowup, which began when Zelensky reminded his hosts of the numerous times Russia has broken ceasefire deals that didn’t include security guarantees, Trump cast doubt on the future of the minerals deal.
A White House official told The Independent that the minerals deal was not signed on Friday, and Trump later accused Zelensky of being uninterested in seeking peace.
“I would say it didn’t work out exactly great from his standpoint. He very much overplayed his hand,” Trump said after the meeting. “We’re looking for peace. We’re not looking for somebody that’s going to sign up a strong power and then not make peace because they feel emboldened, and that’s what I saw happening.”
During both the White House meeting and his subsequent Fox News interview, Zelensky argued that some form of security guarantee from the U.S. or European nations would be a key factor in reaching a genuine end to the war, given the numerous times Russia has violated previous agreements to end the conflict in the absence of such protections.
“Everybody is afraid Putin will come back tomorrow,” Zelensky told anchor Brett Baier, adding, “It’s about just and lasting peace. We have to be very strong at the table of negotiations.”
The Ukrainian leader said security guarantees could come in the form of a European contingent of troops stationed in Ukraine, or further indications that the U.S. proactively sides with Ukraine in the conflict.
In recent weeks, Trump has put considerable distance between himself and Zelensky, accusing the Ukrainian of being a dictator and falsely claiming he started the war with Russia.
This is a breaking news story and will be updated with new information.
