Hard truths about the Trump-Zelensky-Vance Oval Office blow-up …

Views: 3

Hard truths about the Trump-Zelensky-Vance Oval Office blow-up …

Bad for both sides’: Zelenskyy won’t
apologise but hopes to mend ties after Trump clash

In extraordinary scenes, Trump and Zelenskyy clashed in front of the media at the White House on Friday, as ITV News US Correspondent Dan Rivers reports

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has refused to apologise for his heated exchange with US President Donald Trump at Friday’s press conference but hopes to repair relations.

Zelenskyy and his team were asked to leave early after a fiery Oval Office meeting where Trump accused him of “gambling with World War Three,” and US Vice President JD Vance called him “disrespectful”.

Later that day, Zelenskyy appeared on Fox News, where he was asked if his relationship with Trump could be salvaged

Yes, of course, because it’s relations more than two presidents,” Zelenskyy replied.

“It’s the historical relations, strong relations between our people, and that’s why I always began… to thank your people from our people.”

However, Zelenskyy said he was “not sure that we did something bad” when asked about the dispute but admitted it was “bad for both sides”.

“Of course, thankful to the president, and, of course, to Congress, but first of all, to your people. Your people helped save our people… we wanted very much to have all these strong relations, and where it counted, we will have it,” Zelenskyy added.

Meanwhile, after the meeting Trump spoke to reporters before heading to Florida, and he admitted the meeting was not “great” and said Zelenskyy “overplayed his hand”.

The US president repeated that he “wants peace”, and accused Zelenskyy of wanting to “fight, fight, fight”.

To resume talks with the US, Trump says Zelenskyy needs to “say he wants peace”.

The 78-year-old president said in an earlier post on Truth Social, that Zelenskyy “was not ready for peace if America is involved” and that he had “disrespected” the US.

In response, European leaders backed Zelenskyy, assuring him he is not alone, while Prime Minister Keir Starmer pledged Ukraine his “unwavering support”.

But shortly after the exchange began, Vance told Zelenskyy: “Mr President, with respect. I think it’s disrespectful for you to come to the Oval Office to try to litigate this in front of the American media.”

Zelenskyy tried to object, prompting Trump to eventually raise his voice and say the Ukrainian president was “gambling with the lives of millions of people”.

“You’re gambling with World War Three, and what you’re doing is very disrespectful to the country, this country that’s backed you far more than a lot of people say they should have,” Trump said.

Vance also questioned whether Zelenskyy had said thank you during the meeting, to which Zelenskyy responded by saying he had said “thank you a lot of times”.

Trump repeatedly told Zelenskyy that he “does not hold the cards”, with the pair disagreeing on the immediacy of security guarantees.

Zelenskyy shook his head as Trump said he was not worried about security, but rather worried about “getting the deal done

Trump also said that he was in the “middle” between Ukraine and Russia, also revealing that he had spoken with Russian President Vladimir Putin a “couple of days ago” and that he “wants to make a deal”.

He added that he was “not aligned with Putin”, and instead was aligned “with the world” and Europe.

Meanwhile, Zelenskyy called Putin a killer and a terrorist and told Trump there should be “no compromises” with him.

The Ukrainian president also brought along printed photos of Ukraine’s prisoners of war to show Trump, and gently disagreed when Trump repeated his claim that Europe “did much less” than the US to support Ukraine against Russia

Both Starmer and French President Emmanuel Macron travelled to Washington this week before Zelenskyy, to discuss their concerns about the war with President Trump.

But Starmer and other European leaders have called for a US backstop for European forces on the ground, providing support through US aerial intelligence, surveillance and support, as well as rapid-response cover in case the truce is breached.

“You’ve created a moment of tremendous opportunity to reach a historic peace deal – a deal that I think would be celebrated in Ukraine and around the world,” Starmer told Trump at their meeting on Thursday.

“That is the prize. But we have to get it right,” he said.