In response to a growing rift between Washington and Kyiv, US President Donald Trump’s national security adviser has demanded that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy resume talks over a crucial mineral deal.
Zelenskyy had on Wednesday rejected US plans to recoup US military assistance by striking a deal with Ukraine’s mineral wealth, claiming the US had not included any specific security guarantees in the deal.
At a press conference on Thursday, Mike Waltz remarked, “He needs to come back to the table.”
“President Trump is obviously very frustrated right now with President Zelensky, the fact that he hasn’t come to the table, that he hasn’t been willing to take this opportunity that we have offered”, he said.
The comments were made shortly after Zelenskyy and a US envoy in Kyiv were scheduled to miss a press conference.
The Ukrainian leader had planned to address the media alongside Lieutenant General Keith Kellogg, the US envoy for , Ukraine, following talks in Kyiv on Thursday.
The meeting’s format allows for protocol filming without any statements or questions, according to Ukrainian presidential spokesman Serhii Nikiforov’s press release.
As the two men shook hands and sat across a table from each other, photographers and video journalists were permitted into the room.
No one on either side’s immediate response to the conversation’s conclusion.
Zelenskyy later claimed in a statement that he had a “good and detailed” discussion with Kellogg about potential agreements with the US on issues like security and investment.
Zelenskyy wrote on social media that “we must and can ensure that peace is strong and lasting” to prevent Russia from starting a war with a conflict.
With the US president, Ukraine is prepared for a robust, fruitful investment and security agreement. The most efficient and effective method has been suggested. Our workforce is always available.
The discussions come after US President Donald Trump called Zelenskyy a “dictator” in a string of disparaging remarks and suggested that Ukraine was to blame for the conflict that broke out when Russia launched a full-scale invasion in February 2022. In response, Zelenskyy said that Trump was living in a “disinformation space”.
“Some of the rhetoric coming out of Kyiv, frankly, and insults to President Trump were unacceptable”, Waltz said on Thursday, in an apparent reference to those comments.
Trump’s remarks about the conflict sparked outrage in Europe, where leaders claimed they had misinterpreted the outcome and cast doubt on the US’s credibility as a trusted security partner. Trump has stated before that the US contributes too much to European security and that the rest should be split between the US and Europe.
This week, the US president sends several officials to meet with Russian officials in Saudi Arabia, upending years of US foreign policy.
US Vice President JD Vance defended Trump’s approach in a TV interview on Thursday, calling him “an effective negotiator” who “doesn’t take anything off the table”.
Source: Aljazeera
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