Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky emphasized his country's desire for peace after US President Donald Trump's suggestions that he was not ready to make a deal with Russia.
"We want peace. That’s why I came to the United States, and visited President Trump," he wrote in a Saturday post on X/Twitter. "The deal on minerals is just a first step toward security guarantees and getting closer to peace. Our situation is tough, but we can’t just stop fighting and not having guarantees that Putin will not return tomorrow."
"It is important for people in Ukraine to know that they are not alone, that their interests are represented in every country, in every corner of the world," he added.
I visited Ukraine House in Washington where I met with the Ukrainian community.It is crucial for us that Ukraine's voice continues to be heard and that no one forgets about it—both during the war and after. People in Ukraine must know that they are not alone, and that their… pic.twitter.com/Z36s2T42SS
— Volodymyr Zelenskyy / Володимир Зеленський (@ZelenskyyUa) March 1, 2025
Zelensky painted as a beggar, journalists say
Ukrainian media pointed to the incident as evidence of how seriously Zelensky is taking Ukraine's sovereignty.
"Regardless where history takes us, the world - including Donald Trump - was convinced that these issues truly matter for Ukraine," news outlet European Pravda wrote, as reported by the Guardian.
Some Ukrainian officials and analysts emphasized that without security pledges like those that were supposed to be in the critical minerals deal, any ceasefire with Moscow would be broken.
Ukrainian journalist Illia Ponomarenko wrote after the Washington incident that Trump would have found any reason to get offended and would've started conflict anyway.
“You simply can’t win with people who don’t actually want a standard, successful meeting,” he wrote in a Friday post on X/Twitter.
“We can talk endlessly about Zelensky’s missteps and diplomatic setbacks, but the reality is – under any circumstances – he was always going to be called a beggar, a war gambler pushing the world toward world war three, someone who doesn’t want peace, isn’t thankful enough."
'Stand up for what's right'
From back on the frontlines, Ukrainian politicians expressed their support for Zelensky's actions.
"President @ZelenskyyUa is right. Peace without guarantees is not possible," PM Denys Shmyhal said in a Friday post on X/Twitter.
Ruslan Stefanchuk, the speaker of the Ukrainian parliament, added: "NO ONE has the right to forget that in this war Russia is the aggressor and Ukraine is the victim of aggression."
"President Zelensky has the bravery and strength to stand up for what is right," Ukraine's Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha, who was at the meeting, wrote on social media.
“Another [Vladimir] Putin trap failed. Respect to the president for the courage to call things by their proper names, and to defend our people’s honour,” the deputy prime minister, Mykhailo Fedorov, said, as reported by the Guardian.
'Trump and Putin are dividing up the world'
After Friday's confrontation flared over differing visions of how to end Russia's three-year-old invasion, Ukrainians, many of them hardened by three years of war, rallied behind Zelensky in defiance but worried about the future of US backing for Kyiv's war effort.
Kyiv resident Liudmyla Stetsevych, 47, said she feared her country was being squeezed by larger powers.
"Trump and Putin are dividing up the world - that's what I would say. I don't know what will come of it," she said.
Another resident interviewed by Reuters said that she thought that Trump and Vance fundamentally did not understand the face of the war.
"The Americans don't know the real situation, what's going on here," said Ella Kazantseva, 54, as reported by Reuters.
"They don't understand. Everything is beautiful for them."