Zelensky Expresses Gratitude to Trump at NATO Summit
Ukrainian President Voldy Meezelensky extended his thanks to President Donald Trump after speaking at the NATO summit held in the Netherlands on Wednesday.
During his visit to the White House in February, Zelensky had a rather tense exchange with Trump and Vance, engaging in discussions about diplomacy with Russia in an effort to resolve the ongoing conflict. At that time, he even asked Vance if he had expressed gratitude to the Ukrainian leaders for the meeting.
However, on Wednesday, following the NATO gathering, Zelensky took to X to express his appreciation for Trump and the United States. He said, “We’ve tackled all the critical issues. I’m thankful to the President and the US. We discussed how to attain a ceasefire and genuine peace.” He added, “We also talked about methods to safeguard civilians and genuinely appreciate the attention and efforts to bring us closer to peace. More details are forthcoming.”
Notably, Vance found himself defending Trump’s foreign policy amid the earlier confrontation with Zelensky. The February meeting had escalated when Zelensky challenged Vance’s assertion that diplomacy was the optimal approach to end the conflict, highlighting that Russian President Vladimir Putin has a history of breaking agreements.
“What kind of diplomacy, JD, are you referring to?” Zelenskyy questioned, clearly frustrated. Vance responded, asserting, “I’m referring to diplomacy that will halt the destruction of your country.”
Vance later remarked, “I believe it’s inappropriate to debate the President’s stance publicly with the media present. Currently, you’re involved in recruiting military forces due to the situation at hand. We ought to express our gratitude to bring this to the President’s attention.”
Following this heated exchange, Trump announced a halt to peace negotiations, stating that Zelensky could return to the White House when he was ready for real peace talks. After leaving the White House, Zelensky shared a post on X thanking the US, Trump, Congress, and the American people for their support of Ukraine.
Despite their disagreements, Zelensky and Trump engaged in further discussions, and they met again during Pope Francis’s funeral in April at St. Peter’s Cathedral.
Trump has since mentioned that his administration was unable to finalize a peace agreement between Ukraine and Russia, claiming both leaders turned out to be more challenging than anticipated.
“Vladimir Putin was even tougher,” Trump noted during a press conference. “Honestly, I faced some difficulties with Zelenskyy, as you might have seen. It was more challenging than any other conflict.” Yet, he added that discussions with Zelensky had been relatively smooth and he planned to also engage with Putin in the future.
“To be frank, he’s quite competent,” Trump remarked about Zelensky. “Things can get a bit rocky. He seems eager to find a resolution.”
