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Volodymyr Zelensky insists leaders need to be ‘honest and direct with each other’ as he prepares to meet prime minister in Downing Street
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Volodymyr Zelensky has said Donald Trump’s support is “crucial” for Ukraine’s survival as he touched down in the UK after the pair’s explosive White House clash.
The Ukrainian president said Mr Trump wants the war to end “but no one wants peace more than we do” as he prepares to meet Sir Keir Starmer at Downing Street on Saturday.
Mr Zelensky said it was important he and Mr Trump were “honest and direct with each other to truly understand our shared goals” after he refused to apologised over his extraordinary exchange with Mr Trump and vice president JD Vance in the Oval Office.
Mr Zelensky left the White House after a meeting collapsed when JD Vance accused him of having “disrespected” the US.
Mr Trump reiterated the vice president’s claim, adding that Kyiv was “gambling with World War Three”.
The pair were due to sign a vital minerals deal, but Mr Trump and Mr Vance lashed out after the Ukrainian president repeatedly brought up the issue of US security guarantees as part of a future peace agreement with Russia.
European leaders have flocked Mr Zelensky’s defence, with Sir Keir expressing his “unwavering support” for Ukraine after speaking to both leaders.
Kemi Badenoch has said that the UK needs to work with both Ukraine and the US as allies, even if “we may disagree with the US” on yesterday’s public spat between the two leaders.
The Conservative leader called Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky a “hero”, while condemning the tense clash with US President Donald Trump as “innapropriate”.
“I think it is inappropriate to conduct that kind of disagreement in front of cameras. The only person who benefits from that is President Putin,” she said on a visit to Northern Ireland.
Ms Badenoch said: “We need to make sure that we continue to work with both our allies, both Ukraine and the US.”
“We may disagree with the US on what happened yesterday but what is important now is how we move on from what happened yesterday.”
Prime Minister Keir Starmer is meeting with Mr Zelensky this afternoon at Downing Street, followed by a defence summit tomorrow in London attended by major European leaders.
Ukrainian presidential advisor Mykhailo Podolyak has referenced George Orwell’s famed novel 1984 as he described the reverse language of Donald Trump accusing Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky of prolonging Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
The UK should consider using frozen Russian assets to support Ukraine, leader of the opposition Kemi Badenoch has said, calling for “concrete” action from allies.
The Conservative leader told broadcasters on a visit to Northern Ireland that the focus should not be on “whether or not [Ukraine] said thank you or not”, referencing yesterday’s meeting between Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and US President Donald Trump.
“The Prime Minister and I are united in support for Ukraine,” she said.
“What [Zelensky] needs is support and right now what we should be doing is looking at how we can help, whether with using some of those frozen Russian assets – I think it is time to start looking at how we can use that money to support Ukraine.”
She added: “Perhaps we should be looking at a minerals deal on the European side. Let’s improve the procurement.”
Czech prime minister Petr Fiala has accused Donald Trump of bringing into sharp relief the threat Vladimir Putin’s Russia poses to his country and the European continent.
In a message on X, he urged Europe to increase its defence spending and prepare to improve support for Ukraine.
You can read his full message below.
Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova, commenting on Saturday on Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky’s visit to Washington, claimed he rejects peace and is obsessed with the continuation of war.
Mr Zelensky’s visit to Washington is “a complete diplomatic failure of Kyiv”, Ms Zakharova said.
Russia launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 and has since refused to pull its troops from the country. It has killed hundreds of thousands of people, including at least thousands of civilians, according to conservative estimates.
Vladimir Putin has signalled he is open to peace talks but shows no sign of relenting on his opposition to Ukrainian sovereignty.
Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky has arrived in the UK after an unprecedented public clash with US President Donald Trump and his vice president JD Vance in the White House’s Oval Office on Friday.
The Ukrainian leader’s plane, emblazoned with the nation’s flag, touched down at London’s Stansted Airport on Saturday morning and was met by a convoy of cars, following his spat with Mr Trump.
He will meet Sir Keir Starmer for talks at Downing Street this afternoon ahead of a summit of EU leaders tomorrow.
Former security minister Tom Tugendhat said it was “impossible not to feel sympathy for Zelensky” after his clash with Donald Trump at the White House that have left peace deal talks in tatters.
He told Times Radio: “There’s a guy whose country is at war. He’s losing quite literally hundreds of people from his fellow citizens every week. There are hospitals being hit. There are homes being hit.
“There are kids being killed. I mean, it’s a really grim situation.”Referencing Mr Trump’s claims that Kyiv had been ungrateful for US support.
Mr Tugendhat added: “He said very publicly on many occasions, thank you for all the support he’s got. Thank you to America. Thank you to Europe and all the rest of it. But he’s understandably frustrated.”
Former Cabinet minister Tom Tugendhat has said “we’ve gone from politics as service to the country to politics as entertainment”, in response to Friday’s evening’s fiery clash in the Oval Office between Donald Trump and Volodymyr Zelensky.
It comes after the US president said the row would make “great television”.
Asked his thoughts on the clash, Mr Tugendhat told Times Radio: “I was probably as astonished as everybody else. I mean, it was quite the most extraordinary thing I’ve seen in a very long time. And it just, it almost reminded you that we’ve gone from politics as service to the country to politics as entertainment.”
Nigel Farage has dubbed Friday’s Oval Office clash “regrettable”, stopping short of criticising Donald Trump.
The Reform UK leader and Trump-ally warned that the row, which saw the US president claim Volodymyr Zelensky is not “ready for peace”, will “make Putin feel like the winner”.
Posting to social media, he added: “This is not the end of the story, far from it. A peace deal is essential and Ukraine needs the right security guarantees.”
Donald Trump “needs to sort out this mess as much as Zelensky”, Sir Malcolm Rifkind has told The Independent, warning that the US president “cannot deliver a deal unless Zelensky agrees”.
Backing Sir Keir Starmer’s approach to the situation so far, Sir Malcolm – who has previously served as both defence secretary and foreign secretary – said European leaders should help to mediate between the Ukrainian and US presidents.
It comes as No 10 gears up to host Mr Zelensky and other European leaders in Downing Street on Sunday.
“Trump needs to sort out this mess as much as Zelensky. Otherwise the Trump-Putin negotiations on Ukraine will never begin”, Sir Malcolm said.
“Trump cannot deliver a deal unless Zelensky agrees. Zelensky has said he wants to restore relations with Trump. In the next week a formula acceptable to them both should be sorted out – privately. That is where the Europeans can help mediate”, he added.
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