Zelensky calls spat with Trump 'regrettable,' says he's ready to work for peace

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Tuesday the Oval Office blowup with US President Donald Trump last week was "regrettable,” adding that he stands ready to work under Trump's "strong leadership” to get a lasting peace.

Zelensky’s remarks - an apparent attempt to placate Trump - came in a social media post on X, hours after the White House announced a pause military aid to Ukraine that is critical to fighting Russia’s invasion,

He also said Ukraine is ready to sign a lucrative deal on rare-earth minerals and security with Washington.

In an apparent reference to Trump’s criticism following the contentious White House meeting on Friday that Zelensky does not want a peace deal, the Ukrainian leader said: "None of us want an endless war.”

"Ukraine is ready to come to the negotiating table as soon as possible to bring lasting peace closer. Nobody wants peace more than the Ukrainians. My team and I stand ready to work under President Trump’s strong leadership to get a peace that lasts,” he said.

The meeting "did not go the way it was supposed to be," Zelensky said. 

"It is regrettable that it happened this way. It is time to make things right. We would like future cooperation and communication to be constructive.”

He said initial stages of a peace deal could involve releasing prisoners of war and a truce in the sky and sea involving a ban on missiles, long-range drones and attacks on energy and civilian infrastructure - an idea that came from European leaders on Monday. 

That would be followed by working with Washington on "a strong final deal,” Zelensky said.

The US decision to pause military aid catapulted his country into alarm and apprehension. Zelensky’s statement came before Trump was to address the U.S. Congress later Tuesday.

"Regarding the agreement on minerals and security, Ukraine is ready to sign it in any time and in any convenient format,” Zelensky said.

"We see this agreement as a step toward greater security and solid security guarantees, and I truly hope it will work effectively.”
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer spoke to the Ukrainian leader Tuesday and "welcomed President Zelensky’s steadfast commitment to securing peace.”

The post came as officials in Kyiv said they were grateful for vital US help in the war and want to keep working with Washington. 

Ukraine’s prime minister, though, said the country still wants security guarantees to be part of any peace deal and won’t recognize Russian occupation of any Ukrainian land. Those are potential stumbling blocks for Washington and Moscow, respectively.

Ukraine and its allies are concerned Trump is pushing for a quick ceasefire that will favor Russia, which Kyiv says cannot be trusted to honour truces.

A White House official said the US was "pausing and reviewing” its aid to "ensure that it is contributing to a solution.” 

The order will remain in effect until Trump determines that Ukraine has demonstrated a commitment to peace negotiations, said the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the assistance.

The pause isn’t expected to have an immediate impact on the battlefield. Ukrainian forces have slowed Russian advances along the roughly 1,000-kilometer front line, especially in the fiercely contested Donetsk region some 700 kilometers east of Kyiv. 

The Russian onslaught has been costly in troops and armor but hasn’t brought a strategically significant breakthrough for the Kremlin.

Ukraine, which depends heavily on foreign help to hold back Russia’s full-scale invasion that began on Feb. 24, 2022, has feared that aid could be stopped under Trump.

US-made Patriot air defense missile systems, for example, are a pivotal part of protecting Ukraine. Just as vital is US intelligence assistance, which has allowed Ukraine to track Russian troop movements and select targets.

"I feel betrayed, but this feeling is not really deep for some reason. I was expecting something like that from Trump’s side,” said a Ukrainian soldier fighting in Russia’s Kursk region, where Ukraine launched a daring military incursion in August 2024 to improve its hand in negotiations. 

The soldier spoke by phone on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to talk to the media.

On the front line, where Ukraine is struggling to fend off the much larger and better-equipped Russian army, another soldier said the US decision would allow further battlefield gains for Moscow.

"War is very pragmatic,” he said, speaking on condition of anonymity in compliance with military regulations. 

"If we have weapons, enough ammunition, infantry, armoured vehicles and aviation - great. If not, then we’re done,” he said.

He recalled a seven-month delay in US aid that ended in April 2024 but opened a door for the Russian capture of the strategically important city of Avdiivka.

Olena Fedorova, 46, of the southern port city of Odesa, said she hoped Trump’s decision would be temporary because "we really need help.”
US support is vital because Europe cannot fully provide what Ukraine needs in air defence systems, said lawmaker Yehor Chernov, leading "to an increase in the number of casualties among civilians.”

Associated Press