Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and his American counterpart, Donald Trump, had a tense confrontation at the White House during a meeting where they were supposed to sign an agreement on Washington's access to Ukraine's mineral wealth and discuss a potential peace deal with Russia.
"People are dying, you are running out of soldiers," Trump expressed as the meeting grew more tense and escalated into a shouting match. At another moment in the meeting, the U.S. president warned Zelensky that the United States could withdraw from the conflict if Ukraine did not negotiate with Russia.
"This is crucial, this is what we want to talk about, it's very important," Trump stated. However, he was reluctant to give security guarantees: "Either you make an agreement or we leave you alone," he maintained. Zelensky, for his part, urged Trump not to make "concessions with a killer," referring to Vladimir Putin.
The Ukrainian leader, who previously received billions of dollars in weapons and diplomatic support from Joe Biden's administration, now finds himself in a different position with Trump, who aims to end the war quickly, improve ties with Moscow, and recover the money invested in Ukraine.
"You are playing with World War III and what you are doing is very disrespectful to this country, which has supported you much more than many believe it should have," the Republican accused Zelensky during the meeting.
"You are not being grateful at all," Trump reproached during the gathering. "It's going to be very difficult to negotiate this way," added the American president. Vice President J.D. Vance, present at the meeting, accused Zelensky of being "disrespectful."
The Ukrainian leader insisted that any European peacekeeping force deployed after a potential ceasefire would need American security support.
