Zelensky Holds U.S. Talks as Trump Accuses Him of Not Wanting Peace
WASHINGTON (AFP) — Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky spoke with top U.S. envoys Sunday to try to ease tensions, as U.S. President Donald Trump accused his counterpart of not wanting to end the war with Russia.
Zelensky spoke to U.S. officials Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner as both Russia and Ukraine hit each other’s energy sites, with Moscow leaving thousands without power and Kyiv carrying out the largest drone attack on Saint Petersburg since the start of the war in 2022.
Trump and Zelensky have clashed as the U.S. president blocked new sanctions on Russia and struck a diesel deal with Moscow, fuelling fears in Kyiv and Europe that the White House was steering towards Moscow.
A Wall Street Journal report that Russian President Vladimir Putin proposed a meeting on Ukraine with Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping – but not Zelensky – has set off more alarm bells.
On Sunday, Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform that he was in the process of negotiating peace between Russia and Ukraine and making “great progress,” but claimed: “Zelensky doesn’t care, and frankly, with all of the money that Europe is famously giving him... he doesn’t want to end this war, and probably never did.”
“Zelensky is using Diesel Refineries in Russia as a target, knowing that these attacks are seriously hurting the world diesel markets, including those in the United States,” Trump said.
Earlier, after speaking to Trump’s business partner Witkoff and Kushner, Zelensky said “a lot depends” on the U.S. position in the war but that “it is clear that there are many things that matter to all of us and that this war must be brought to an end.”
Ukraine was ready to work “constructively” and “honestly”, he said. “We expect exactly this approach from all our partners – both from the Europeans and, of course, from the American side.”
He said he discussed deliveries of U.S. Patriot air defense systems, as Kyiv struggles to counter Russian missiles.
Zelensky earlier told U.S. broadcaster NBC it would be a “historic mistake” if Washington formally supported Russia and that he hoped Trump would “change his decisions.”
But he also said he was “thankful” the United States resumed intelligence sharing after a pause that left his country vulnerable to Russian missile strikes.