‘Putin will destroy you…’ Trump lashes out at Zelenskyy, shouts, tosses maps, urges Ukrainian President to accept Putin’s terms
The meeting between Trump and Zelenskyy came amid renewed U.S. president's push for ending Russia's war after the ceasefire between Israel and Hamas.
Trump’s meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy at the White House last week reportedly became quite tense. According to the Financial Times report, Doland Trump urged Volodymyr Zelenskyy to accept Russia’s conditions for ending the war at a tense White House meeting on Friday, expressing that Vladimir Putin had warned him that he would “destroy” Ukraine if the conditions were not accepted.
What actions did Trump take during the tense meeting?
The meeting between the US and Ukrainian presidents repeatedly descended into a “shouting match,” with Trump reportedly “cursing constantly” throughout, as cited by the people familiar with the matter, reported Financial Times.
As reported by the Financial Times, during the meeting, Trump allegedly pointedly rejected maps of the Ukrainian frontline and insisted that Zelenskyy cede the entire Donbas region to Putin. He also repeated language that Putin used in their conversation the previous day.
How did Trump respond to Zelenskyy’s demands of long-range Tomahawk cruise missiles?
Although Trump went on to endorse keeping existing front lines, the turbulent White House session illustrated both the president’s new line of attack on the war and his partiality to Putin’s maximalist demands. The meeting between Trump and Zelenskyy came amid renewed U.S. President’s push for ending Russia’s war after the ceasefire between Israel and Hamas.
In an effort to convince Trump to supply long-range Tomahawk cruise missiles to Ukraine, Zelenskyy and his team visited the White House, but the U.S. president ultimately rejected the proposal. Trump is said to have repeated numerous points raised by Putin’s talking points verbatim at Friday’s meeting, including points that contradicted his own most recent comments about Russia’s weaknesses, according to the European officials who were briefed on the meeting.
As per a European official, who was aware of the meeting, Trump told Zelenskyy that Putin had characterized the conflict as a “special operation, not even a war”, and added that the Ukrainian president needed to cut a deal or face destruction. According to the official, Trump told Zelenskyy that he was losing the war and cautioned, “If [Putin] wants it, he will destroy you.”
STORY HIGHLIGHTS
- Trump’s meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy at the White House last week reportedly became quite tense.
- Trump told Zelenskyy that Putin had characterized the conflict as a “special operation, not even a war”.
- At one point in the meeting, it is reported that the president of the United States threw Ukraine’s battlefield maps on the ground.
- The meeting between Trump and Zelenskyy came amid renewed U.S. President’s push for ending Russia’s war after the ceasefire between Israel and Hamas.
At one point in the meeting, it is reported that the president of the United States threw Ukraine’s battlefield maps on the ground. An official who encountered the meeting said that Trump indicated he was “sick” of seeing the front-line maps of Ukraine again and again.
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