Ukrainians reacted with shock and anger after an unprecedented verbal altercation between Donald Trump and Volodymyr Zelenskyy in the White House.
Prime Minister Denys Shmygal said he supported Zelenskyy’s demand for U.S. security guarantees to back any peace deal, warning on X that “ceasefire without guarantees is the way to Russian occupation” of Europe.
Deputy Prime Minister Mykhailo Fedorov praised Zelenskyy’s “bravery” in “standing up for the honour of our people, who have paid with their blood for freedom.”
Foreign Ministry Andrii Sybiha said Zelenskyy “has the bravery and strength to stand up for what is right”.
A Ukrainian presidency source accused the U.S. leadership of “openly playing along with Russia”.
“We have great respect for the USA and love the citizens of the USA.
“But, unfortunately, our friends — the American people — have made a mistake in Trump,” the source said, adding that Ukraine would aim for “a new alliance with European countries”.
Tymofiy Mylovanov, the head of the Kyiv school of economics, said it is still possible the minerals deal that Zelensky had travelled to the United States to sign was still salvageable – as well as Kyiv’s relationship with Washington.
But the scenes from the Oval Office stunned him.
– AFP
