US President Donald Trump told his Ukrainian counterpart on live TV that he should ‘be thankful,’ accusing Volodymr Zelenskyy of being ‘disrespectful’ and ‘gambling with World War III.’
Soon after Ukrainian President Volodymr Zelenskyy left the White House on Friday after an astonishing clash with US President Donald Trump, Ukrainians rallied around Zelenskyy as a defender of the country’s interests.
The shouting match seemed to dash, at least for now, Ukrainian hopes that the US could be locked in as a reliable partner to conclude Russia’s ongoing full-scale invasion.
In central Kyiv on Saturday, Ukrainians were left stunned, wondering what was next for their country.
“I’m quite shocked by all of this,” said 23-year-old cook Daniel Novak.
“But for now, I understand that Zelenskyy is doing his best, that he is holding on,” he added.
The exchange, which saw a frustrated Zelenskyy lectured by Trump and US Vice President JD Vance over what they saw as his lack of gratitude for previous US support, delighted officials in Moscow, who saw it as a final breakdown in relations between Washington and the Ukrainian leader.
“They humiliated now only him (Zelenskyy). They humiliated all the dead and all these children who lost their parents. All the widows. I am the widow of a Hero of Ukraine,” said Vitalyna Tarasova, an English teacher.
“Yesterday they spat at him, at me, at my children and it was very painful to watch.”
Zelenskyy will attend a major summit of European leaders in London on Sunday aimed at keeping alive hopes for peace on terms acceptable to Ukraine.
