Volodymyr Zelensky met with Donald Trump in Washington.

The President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelensky, who is on a visit to the United States, arrived at the White House in Washington to meet with U.S. President Donald Trump. Following the meeting, a deal regarding minerals between Ukraine and the U.S. is expected to be signed. ZAXID.NET publishes the main points from the presidents' conversation with the media.

On Friday, February 28, Donald Trump met with Volodymyr Zelensky at the White House. During the meeting, Trump stated that it was a "great honor" for him to host Volodymyr Zelensky in Washington, while the President of Ukraine showed him photographs of Ukrainian soldiers who had returned from captivity.

Donald Trump reiterated that if he had been president earlier, Russia supposedly would not have started a war against Ukraine, and he emphasized the success of the agreement regarding rare earth minerals in Ukraine, stating, "As soon as we finalize the deal, everything will be over." At the same time, Volodymyr Zelensky responded to Trump, noting that Vladimir Putin had violated the ceasefire agreement 25 times— including during Trump's presidency. Trump himself stated that he is "in the middle—both for Ukraine and for the Russian Federation."

According to Donald Trump, the U.S. will continue to provide arms to Ukraine.

"We will give Ukraine weapons. I hope we won't have to send much," Donald Trump said.

Donald Trump mentioned that he spoke again with Vladimir Putin and claimed that he supposedly wants to "reach an agreement." However, Trump did not specify what kind of agreement he was referring to.

Commenting on the agreement between Ukraine and the U.S. regarding minerals, which includes further negotiations on security guarantees, Volodymyr Zelensky stressed that it might not be sufficient. Additionally, the Ukrainian president stated that Russia must pay for its actions.

When asked by journalists whether Russia would leave Ukrainian territories, Trump replied, "We'll see. It's a large area."

Trump and Zelensky's Dispute During the Press Conference

During the conversation, Zelensky emphasized that Ukraine needs security guarantees, not a ceasefire, to which U.S. Vice President Jay D. Vance reacted. The American side stated that Ukraine "should be grateful." In response to Trump's and Vice President Vance's comments that Ukraine lacks men to continue the war, Zelensky suggested that the U.S. president visit Ukraine and see for himself.

"You do not have the right to tell us what to do," Zelensky responded to the U.S. president and vice president's remarks regarding Ukraine's position in the war.

"Gratitude should be expressed. And you don't do that very well. It's not very good, not very nice on your part," Trump stated.

In response to Donald Trump's comments that Ukraine "doesn't have cards" in the negotiations, Volodymyr Zelensky replied that he "didn't come here to play cards."

Dispute Between Zelensky and Trump

According to Trump, Volodymyr Zelensky's comments were "very disrespectful." The U.S. president also claimed that Zelensky "is playing with the lives of millions of people" and "risks starting World War III."

"You either make a deal, or we walk away," Trump concluded, adding that it would be difficult for him to make a deal due to "Zelensky's hatred for Putin."

After the leaders' dispute, the press conference was concluded. The conversation between the presidents and the media representatives lasted about an hour. The leaders will hold negotiations, with the signing of the minerals agreement expected as a result. The text of the agreement can be found here.

It should be noted that before speaking with Trump, Volodymyr Zelensky held a meeting with a bipartisan delegation from the U.S. Senate.

"We are proud to have such strategic partners and friends as the United States of America. Thank you for the unwavering bipartisan support for Ukraine throughout all three years of full-scale Russian aggression", he wrote.

After negotiations with the U.S. leader, Volodymyr Zelensky will head to the Hudson Institute and later meet with representatives of the Ukrainian community at the Ukrainian House.

Updated 20:40. After the negotiations, Donald Trump accused Zelensky of disrespect, after which the Ukrainian president left the White House early. The press conference for the signing of the minerals agreement was canceled, and likely the agreement itself was also not signed.

Updated 21:25. Volodymyr Zelensky commented on his visit to the White House, thanking the American people for their support.

"Thank you, America, thank you for your support, thank you for this visit. Thank you to the President, Congress, and the American people.
Ukraine needs a just and lasting peace, and we are working towards that," the president wrote on X.