Donald Trump on Monday, March 3, warned that Washington would “not put up with” Volodymyr Zelensky’s rhetoric much longer, as the U.S. president prepared to meet his top advisors following a tense Oval Office confrontation with the Ukrainian leader.
“This is the worst statement that could have been made by Zelensky, and America will not put up with it for much longer,” Trump wrote on social media, referring to a report in which the Ukrainian president suggested the war with Russia remained far from over. “This guy doesn’t want there to be Peace as long as he has America’s backing.”
Trump also criticized European leaders who met with Zelensky in London over the weekend for emergency talks, claiming they “stated flatly that they cannot do the job without the U.S.”
“Probably not a great statement to have been made in terms of a show of strength against Russia. What are they thinking,” he said on his Truth Social platform.
The remarks followed a heated meeting on Friday between Trump, Vice President JD Vance, and Zelensky at the White House, which erupted into a rare public dispute.
Trump and Vance accused Zelensky of being ungrateful for U.S. military aid, while Zelensky insisted on security guarantees from Washington as part of any ceasefire deal.
The meeting ended with Zelensky being asked to leave the White House, and a key agreement granting the U.S. preferential access to Ukraine’s mineral resources was left unsigned.
Trump is now consulting his top advisors to determine the next steps on Ukraine, U.S. National Security Advisor Mike Waltz told reporters on Monday. White House officials have not confirmed reports by Axios suggesting that Trump is considering cutting all military aid to Kyiv following the confrontation.
Meanwhile, European leaders, who have proposed sending peacekeepers to enforce a ceasefire while seeking continued U.S. support, convened in London on Sunday in an effort to contain the fallout.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio spoke with British Foreign Secretary David Lammy on Monday about the London meeting. Rubio “confirmed the United States is ready to negotiate to end the Ukraine-Russia conflict and will continue working with the UK towards peace in Ukraine,” State Department spokeswoman Tammy Bruce said.
