In a significant backdown, Volodymyr Zelenskyy has called his disastrous White House meeting with Donald Trump and JD Vance “regrettable”. Zelenskyy also says he’s ready to work with the President to get “a peace that lasts”.
It comes after Trump announced he was pausing all aid to Ukraine.
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The US has been a major military and aid donor since Russia’s full-scale invasion in February 2022.
The US Department of Defense has provided a figure of around $182 billion, around $290 Australian.
The Ukrainian President said in his statement he was ready to sign a minerals and security agreement with the US. He also said he values what America has done to help maintain Ukraine’s sovereignty and independence.
Earlier in the week, Zelenskyy, Trump and Vance’s heated discussion about a peace deal with Russia went viral.
However, in Zelenskyy’s latest statement he says it is time to make things “right” and would like “future cooperation and communication to be constructive”.
Trump and Zelenskyy’s relationship has been turbulent. The US president recently called Zelenskyy a “dictator” in a social media post and repeated the Kremlin lie that Ukraine was responsible for starting the war.
Western leaders will hope the statement help smooth Kyiv’s relations with the White House, who are yet to respond.
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