A White House meeting that was intended to kick off negotiations over a deal over Ukraine’s rare earth minerals devolved Friday afternoon into a remarkable confrontation, with President Donald Trump and Vice President JD Vance chastising Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and telling him he wasn’t grateful enough to the United States.
After the meeting, Trump said in a statement on his Truth Social website that Zelenskyy “is not ready” for peace and that he “disrespected” the U.S.
“He disrespected the United States of America in its cherished Oval Office,” Trump said. “He can come back when he is ready for Peace.”
Soon after, a planned joint press conference with the two leaders was called off and Zelenskyy’s motorcade departed the White House.
The fiery exchange underscored the tension that has emerged between the United States and Ukraine — along with many of its European allies — over the tougher line that Trump has taken toward the country since coming into office. He has called Zelenskyy a “dictator“ and falsely said that Ukraine, not Russia, started the war.
The skirmish in the Oval Office Friday began after Vance said that the path to peace between Russia and Ukraine is diplomacy. Zelenskyy disagreed, noting that Russia had broken agreements with his government in the past.
“He killed our people, and he didn’t exchange prisoners,” Zelenskyy said about Russian President Vladimir Putin. “What kind of diplomacy, JD, you are speaking about? What do you mean?” Zelenskyy said.
“I’m talking about the kind of diplomacy that’s going to end the destruction of your country,” Vance shot back, adding, “I think it’s disrespectful for you to come into the Oval Office to try to litigate this in front of the American media right now.”
When Vance told Zelenskyy that Ukraine has “manpower problems” in recruiting troops, Zelenskyy challenged Vance, noting he had never even been to his country.
“I’ve actually watched and seen the stories,” Vance responded. “And I know what happens is you bring people, you bring them on a propaganda tour, Mr. President.”
“Do you think that it’s respectful to come to the Oval Office of the United States of America and attack the administration that is trying to trying to prevent the destruction of your country?” he added.
Zelenskyy said that everyone has “problems” during the war and suggested that the U.S. doesn’t feel the effects of the war because of the “nice ocean” between the two countries. He said the U.S. may not feel the effects now, but added, “You will feel it in the future.”
“Don’t tell us what we’re going to feel because you’re in no position to dictate that,” Trump said, raising his voice and pointing his finger at Zelenskyy. “You’re not in a good position.”
“You’re gambling with World War III,” Trump said. “And what you’re doing is very disrespectful to the country — this country.”
“I’ve empowered you to be a tough guy,” Trump said. “And I don’t think you’d be a tough guy without the United States. And your people are very brave, but you’re either going to make a deal or we’re out, and if we’re out, you’ll fight it out.”
Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, D-R.I., was part of a bipartisan group of senators who met with Zelenskyy on Friday morning. Asked about the clash in the Oval Office between Trump, Vance and Zelenskyy, Whitehouse said, “That’s what you get for letting Vance in the room.”
Zelenskyy’s visit had been expected to focus in large part on a potential deal for the U.S. to access Ukraine’s rare-earth minerals, which are used to make a variety of tech products.
Trump previewed the visit during a Cabinet meeting Wednesday, signaling that the two countries had made progress on an agreement that would grant the U.S. a significant ownership stake in Ukraine’s rare-earth minerals as a form of repayment for Washington’s support of Kyiv since Russia invaded in February 2022.
“We’re going to be signing an agreement, which will be a very big agreement,” Trump said.
Trump and allied leaders have presented the mineral rights agreement as an important step forward for Ukraine on the road to peace with Russia more than three years after it invaded.
U.S. officials initiated peace talks with Russian negotiators this month in Saudi Arabia, with Secretary of State Marco Rubio leading the U.S. delegation. It was the first time Russian and American officials had met in person during the Trump administration with the express intent of bringing an end to the war in Ukraine.
Trump has long accused Zelenskyy of taking undue advantage of the U.S. and goading then-President Joe Biden into spending billions of U.S. dollars on a war that “couldn’t be won.”
The minerals agreement, Trump argued, would serve as reimbursement for the nearly $66 billion in military assistance the U.S. has provided Ukraine over the past three years, and it could create an “economic partnership” between the two countries.
“The minerals agreement will provide the basis for a more sustainable future relationship between the United States and Ukraine and thus stimulate the long-term prosperity that will help the Ukrainians rebuild their country,” Trump said Wednesday.
Ukraine has some of the world’s largest reserves of titanium and iron ore. Many of the minerals, however, are in areas controlled by Russian troops, according to U.S. officials.
Russia has proposed a similar deal that would give the U.S. ownership of rare-earth minerals and valuable metals in Russian-controlled Ukrainian territory, an idea that both Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin have signaled interest in.
Zelenskyy this month rebuffed the initial U.S. offer on rare-earth minerals, saying it did not include strong enough security guarantees for Ukraine.
The rejection, paired with Zelenskyy’s insistence that Ukrainian officials be involved in U.S.-Russia talks to end the war, drew Trump’s fury.
After Zelenskyy accused Trump of living in a Russian “disinformation bubble,” Trump maligned him as “a Dictator without Elections,” arguing without evidence that Zelenskyy decided to postpone elections as Ukraine battles Russia because of low popularity numbers.
Trump later told Fox News that Zelenskyy would hamstring his efforts to negotiate an end to the war.
“I don’t think he’s very important to be at meetings, to be honest with you. He’s been there for three years. He makes it very hard to make deals,” Trump said.
He struck a more conciliatory tone Thursday at a joint news conference with British Prime Minister Keir Starmer.
“We’re going to get along really well,” Trump said of Zelenskyy. “I have a lot of respect for him. We’ve given him a lot of equipment and a lot of money, but they have fought very bravely, no matter how you figure.”