Zelensky seeks to thaw relations after Trump spat: Peace 'will be difficult' without US
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky took to social media Saturday to clarify comments he made during the contentious back-and-forth with President Trump at the White House a day earlier, saying lasting peace in Eastern Europe would be "difficult" without U.S. support.
Zelensky, in a lengthy thread on the social platform X, expressed gratitude for the U.S. assistance to Kyiv during Russia’s three-year invasion of his country, reiterated the two nations' “strategic” partnership and said no one wants peace more than Ukraine.
“We’ve been fighting for 3 years, and Ukrainian people need to know that America is on our side,” Zelensky wrote, adding that Kyiv needs to be “strong” during peace agreement talks.
“Peace can only come when we know we have security guarantees, when our army is strong, and our partners are with us,” he said.
“It will be difficult without the U.S. support. But we can’t lose our will, our freedom, or our people. We’ve seen how Russians came to our homes and killed many people,” the Ukrainian leader continued. “Nobody wants another wave of occupation. If we cannot be accepted to NATO, we need some clear structure of security guarantees from our allies in the U.S.”
Zelensky, while acknowledging Trump's talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin about negotiating an end to the war, argued that a ceasefire between Russia and Ukraine would not work, pointing to several deals Putin has "broken" in the past. He said that while the minerals deal should go forward, it may still not be "enough."
"We want peace. That’s why I came to the United States, and visited President Trump. The deal on minerals is just a first step toward security guarantees and getting closer to peace," the Ukrainian president wrote Saturday. "Our situation is tough, but we can’t just stop fighting and not having guarantees that Putin will not return tomorrow."
"We are ready to sign the minerals agreement, and it will be the first step toward security guarantees. But it’s not enough, and we need more than just that," he added in another post. "A ceasefire without security guarantees is dangerous for Ukraine. We’ve been fighting for 3 years, and Ukrainian people need to know that America is on our side."
The early morning rant came after a bilateral meeting between Trump and Zelensky derailed on Friday, when Vice President Vance said the president was using diplomacy to try to broker a peace agreement and called the Ukrainian leader "disrespectful" for debating it in front of the news media.
Vance added that he “should be thanking the president for trying to bring an end to his conflict.”
Zelensky defended his military and citizens, saying the U.S. has not directly experienced the consequences of the war — a rebuttal that ignited a strong response from Trump.
“You don’t have the cards right now. With us, you start having cards,” Trump said Friday, reiterating a point he's made in the past, adding that Zelensky is “gambling with the lives of millions of people, you’re gambling with World War III … and what you’re doing is very disrespectful to the country, this country, that’s backed you far more than a lot of people said they should have.”
Following the meeting, Trump claimed Zelensky was not ready to make a peace deal and that he “overplayed his hand.”
Zelensky, hours after the heated spat, told Fox News's Bret Baier in an interview that he will not apologize for his comments and suggested the meeting could be bad for both countries.
On Saturday, Zelensky wrote that once “security guarantees” are ready, then Ukraine will discuss peace talks with Europe, the U.S. and Russia.
“War alone is too long, and we don’t have enough weapons to push them out entirely,” the Ukrainian leader said, referring to Russia's military.
He added that the Ukrainians want Washington to “stand more firmly on our side.”
“It’s understandable the U.S. might look for dialogue with Putin. But the U.S. has always spoken about ‘peace through strength.’ And together we can take strong steps against Putin,” he wrote.
“American people helped save our people. Humans and human rights come first. We’re truly thankful," Zelensky continued. "We want only strong relations with America, and I really hope we will have them."
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