Kyiv has sought to ease tension with Washington and said it still wants an “investment and security” deal with the White House, as Russia-backed US president Donald Trump over a scathing and falsehood-riddled attack on his Ukrainian counterpart.
Several European leaders expressed strong support for Volodymyr Zelenskiy in a spat with Mr Trump that deepened the rift between their countries after Ukraine was not invited to US-Russia talks this week on how to end its defensive war against Russia.
Mr Zelenskiy said he had a “productive meeting” on Thursday with Keith Kellogg, Mr Trump’s special envoy on the war, and thanked the US for supporting Ukraine during Russia’s devastating full-scale invasion, which will reach the three-year mark next week.
“From the very first second of this war, Ukraine has sought peace. We must and can ensure that peace is strong and lasting – so that Russia can never return with war,” Mr Zelenskiy wrote on social media.
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“Ukraine is ready for a strong, effective investment and security agreement with the President of the United States. We have proposed the fastest and most constructive way to achieve results. Our team is ready to work 24/7,” he said.
“It’s important for us – and for the entire free world – that American strength is felt ... Success unites us all. Strong Ukraine-US relations benefit the entire world.”
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However, Kyiv officials said a post-meeting press conference was cancelled at the US side’s request, as Mr Trump and senior members of his administration continued to upbraid Mr Zelenskiy and Russia echoed their criticism.
Moscow accused the Ukrainian leader of making “inadmissible” remarks about foreign counterparts after he said Mr Trump was living in a Russian “disinformation bubble”. That comment came in response to unfounded claims from Mr Trump that Kyiv had started the war with Russia and that Mr Zelenskiy was a “dictator” with single-digit public support.
“The rhetoric of Zelenskiy and many representatives of the Kyiv regime leaves much to be desired,” said Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov. “Often representatives of the Ukrainian regime, especially in recent months, allow themselves to say absolutely unacceptable things about heads of other states,” he added, without offering any examples.
Mr Peskov also said that Russia was “fully in agreement with the US administration ... that all the set objectives should be attained through peaceful means, through diplomatic talks”.
The Kremlin’s “set objectives” for its war on Ukraine include a demand that it accept permanent occupation of five regions, four of which are not fully controlled by Russia’s invasion force, and give up any hope of ever joining Nato.
Mr Trump’s administration has already told Ukraine not to expect to regain all occupied territory, join Nato or secure US peacekeepers in any peace deal.
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The US leader said on Wednesday night that he planned to push Ukraine to sign a deal to give the US access to many of its rare earth and other natural resources in exchange for security support – which Mr Zelenskiy rejected recently as unfair: “Yeah, I think I’m going to resurrect that deal ... or things are going to not make him too happy,” said Mr Trump.
Mr Trump is expected to meet separately with French president Emmanuel Macron and British prime minister Keir Starmer next week as European powers struggle to respond to the US rapprochement with Russia and its readiness to seek an end to the war without their help.
Several European leaders, including Mr Starmer and German chancellor Olaf Scholz, dismissed Mr Trump’s claims that the Ukrainian leader was a dictator and that his country was to blame for the continent’s biggest war in 80 years.
