Photo credit: Radio Canada
A meeting between US President Donald Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy devolved into a shouting match on Friday, creating a remarkable scene in the Oval Office.
ABC News reports that the exchange saw Trump and Vice-President JD Vance rebuke Zelenskyy for his handling of the war, again falsely blaming the Ukrainian leader for a conflict that began when Russia’s Vladimir Putin Launched a full-scale invasion.
The Ukrainian President was in Washington to sign an agreement to give the US access to Ukraine’s mineral resources. However, boiling tensions exploded into public view as Trump and Vance accused Zelenskyy of being “disrespectful” toward the United States and the Trump administration.
With their joint news conference cancelled, Trump issued a terse statement and Zelenskyy left shortly after. The White House said it asked Zelenskyy to leave, which a member of the Ukrainian delegation confirmed.
In a social media post, Trump said, “I have determined that President Zelenskyy is not ready for Peace if America is involved because he feels our involvement gives hin a big advantage in negotiations. I don’t want advantage, I want PEACE. He disrespected the United States of America in its cherished Oval Office. He can come back when he is ready for peace.”
Zelenskyy also posted, “Thank you America, thank you for your support, thank you for this visit. Thank you @POTUS, Congress, and the American people. Ukraine needs just and lasting peace, and we are working exactly for that.”
The shouting match began after Vance stepped in to defend Trump’s diplomatic approach, including his talks with Putin, and berate Zelenskyy.
Zelenskyy noted Russia’s aggression which started in 2014 when Putin’s forces annexed Crimea.
Vance demanded to know whether Zelenskyy had said “thank you” once during the meeting. Before tempers flared, Zelenskyy had thanked Trump for the invitation and had previously expressed gratitude multiple times for US support throughout the war.
Vance told Zelenskyy: “Mr President, with respect, I think it’s disrespectful for you to come into the Oval Office and try to litigate this in front of the American media. Right now, you guys are going around enforcing conscripts to the front lines because you have manpower problems. You should be thanking the president for trying to bring an end to this conflict.”
