Trump furious over Zelensky's rapprochement with EU leaders
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Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky's first visit to the White House to see Donald Trump turned into a high-profile "public scandal". While the Ukrainian leader traveled to the UK, the US president watched with indignation as Europe demonstrated support for Zelensky.
This was reported by Politico.
Trump is angry with Zelensky
The publication wrote that Ukraine and the United States had reached an agreement on the text of the minerals agreement. There was hope that Volodymyr Zelensky will sign the document during his visit to Washington.
In preparation for the trip, Zelensky's team exuded enthusiasm, assuring parliamentarians and journalists that this was an important breakthrough.
A senior Ukrainian official in Brussels was giving an interview to Politico when he was interrupted by an important call. When he returned, he told the journalist that Zelensky was flying to Washington and then heading to London.
He said: "It’s a win — he is meeting Trump before Putin meets him".
Zelensky was to sign the agreement
It was expected that Zelensky would sign the agreement, adding clauses on security guarantees, and then present the document to European allies in London. However, it was the issue of security guarantees that became the subject of controversy. After almost 40 minutes of calm conversation in the Oval Office with Trump and Vice President J.D. Vance, Zelensky's position caused a tense moment.
"On a very human level... it shows that nothing is sacred," said a senior diplomat in Paris, commenting on the Trump-Zelensky spat.
Partners support Zelensky
On Friday evening, as the news of the White House scandal spread across Europe, British officials who were already at home began receiving alarming messages.
One of them said: "There was a lot of WhatsApp traffic. It was people at home trying to have a night off, but then instantly realizing — fuck me, this is really bad".
While in Portugal, Macron learned of the scandal during a TV interview. As soon as the show ended, he read the news, boarded a plane to Paris, and called Zelensky from the plane.
German politician Friedrich Merz also reacted quickly when he received footage of the events on his way back to Sauerland. He immediately made several phone calls and published an article in support of Zelensky.
Three days later, Merz informed the CDU leadership of major developments: easing the debt ceiling and creating a 500 billion euro fund for defense and economic stimulus.
David Lammy, the British Foreign Secretary, returned from Washington satisfied with the results of his talks with Marco Rubio. However, news from the Oval Office quickly overshadowed the day.
Prime Minister Keir Starmer avoided public comment, but within hours of the scandal, he called both Trump and Zelensky.
The next day, Zelensky arrived in London, where he was met by Starmer on the doorstep of Downing Street. The Prime Minister warmly welcomed the Ukrainian leader.
Starmer used the summit in London to rally European countries around an initiative for a peace plan that he and Macron were to present to Trump.
Zelensky after participating in the summit and went to meet with King Charles III, a move of great political importance. It is known that Trump has great sympathy for the British royal family, although his own summit with them is still in preparation.
"People definitely saw it," the American official said.
How Trump reacted
The newspaper writes that Trump was angry not only because of the royal visit, but also because of Europe, which "warmly supported" Zelensky. Trump himself considered such a demonstration of support as hostile.
On Sunday evening, the Ukrainian president gave a 72-minute interview at London's Stansted Airport. There he said that a peace agreement was still "very, very far away".
That speech, according to some officials, was the last straw — a day later, Trump suspended military aid to Ukraine.
As a reminder, the White House has commented on the possible visit of US President Donald Trump to Ukraine. This happened after President Volodymyr Zelensky invited the US leader to come to Kyiv.
Also, Mark Burns, spiritual advisor to US President Donald Trump, called on the American leader to provide Ukraine with more weapons and air defense systems. He noted that he had previously been "brainwashed by fake news".
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