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Donald Trump has welcomed Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to the White House for talks on security guarantees and a minerals deal ahead of peace talks to end Russia’s war on Ukraine.
The meeting comes after the president called the Ukrainian leader a “dictator” and falsely accused him of starting the war. In talks this week with President Emmanuel Macron of France and U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer, Trump appeared to smooth over any previous antagonism toward Zelensky.
Meanwhile, a California federal judge has ordered the U.S. government’s Office of Personnel Management to temporarily rescind directives ordering the mass firings of probationary employees at dozens of federal agencies, a major blow to Donald Trump’s administration as it attempts to drastically downsize the state under the guidance of Elon Musk and his Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE).
“Congress has given the authority to hire and fire to the agencies themselves,” U.S. District Judge William Alsup ruled in San Francisco on Thursday.
“The Office of Personnel Management does not have any authority whatsoever under any statute in the history of the universe to hire and fire employees at another agency.”
Oliver O’Connell28 February 2025 17:49
Oliver O’Connell28 February 2025 17:44
Things got testy at the meeting when Vice President JD Vance said it was “disrespectful for Zelenskyy to come into the Oval Office, litigating in front of the American media.”
Mr. President, Mr. President, with respect. I think it’s disrespectful for you to come to the Oval Office to try to litigate this in front of the American media. Right now, you guys are going around and forcing conscripts to the front lines because you have manpower problems, you should be thanking the president for trying to bring it into this Ukraine that you see what problems I have been to. I’ve actually, I’ve actually watched and seen the stories, and I know what happens is you bring people. You bring them on a propaganda tour, Mr. President, are Do you disagree that you’ve had problems bringing people in your military, and do you think that it’s respectful to come to the Oval Office of the United States of America and attack the administration is trying to prevent the destruction of your country?
President Donald Trump tells Zelenskyy: “The problem is, I’ve empowered you to be a tough guy, and I don’t think he’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. I don’t think it’s going to be pretty.”
“You’re in a much better position, but you’re not acting at all thankful,” Trump adds. “And that’s not a nice thing. I’ll be honest. That’s not a nice thing.”
Oliver O’Connell28 February 2025 17:39
President Donald Trump has said he does not ally himself more with Ukraine than Russia.
Asked if he positions himself in the middle between them or on the Ukraine, Trump said: “I’m in the middle. I want to solve this thing. I’m for both. I want to get it solved.”
“If we can solve it, great. If we can’t solve it, they’re going to have to fight it out, and who knows what’s going to happen,” he added.
Oliver O’Connell28 February 2025 17:33
Volodymyr Zelensky has told Donald Trump that the minerals deal is not enough to guarantee Ukraine’s security.
Russian president Vladimir Putin began the war and therefore must pay, Mr Zelensky added.
He urged Mr Trump to make “no compromises with a killer”.
But the US president revealed that he has spoken to Putin just days ago, and has reiterated that Kyiv will need to make compromises in order to reach a peace deal.
Alex Croft28 February 2025 17:31
President Volodymyr Zelensky thanked President Donald Trump in the Oval Office (EPA)
President Volodymyr Zelensky thanked President Donald Trump for the deal they will sign later today and said he wanted to talk to the U.S. about what they were willing to do.
About Russian President Vladimir Putin, he said he hoped “together, we can stop him.”
Zelensky said that Ukraine needs U.S. air defenses, the best air defense in the world. “Even after the war, will need calm.”
The Ukrainian president brought out Manila folders of pictures to show Trump — pictures of “ladies and men” impacted by the war, adding he didn’t want to show pictures of children.
Zelensky said of the Russians: ”Even in the war there are rules. … These guys, they don’t have rules.”
Oliver O’Connell28 February 2025 17:28
Zelensky shook hands with the president, dressed in a black sweater – a departure from the military fatigues he is known to often wear.
Turning to members of the press who captured the exchange Trump added “he’s all dressed up today” as the Ukrainian president smiled sheepishly.
A clip of the interaction circulating on social media was seized on by “First Buddy” Elon Musk, who quoted “all dressed up” with a crying laughing emoji.
Oliver O’Connell28 February 2025 17:22
Donald Trump meets with Volodymyr Zelensky at the White House. The Ukrainian president showed President Trump pictures of Ukrainian soldiers (REUTERS)
President Donald Trump told President Volodymyr Zelensky: “Your soldiers have been unbelievably brave. We give them great equipment, but they, somebody has to use the equipment. They’ve been unbelievably brave, and we give them great credit. This was supposed to be over very quickly, and here we are, three years later. So I give tremendous gratitude, generals and your soldiers and yourself, in a sense, that being very hard fighting, very tough fighting, great fighters, and we have to be very proud of them. But now we want to get it over. It’s enough. We want to get it over with. So it’s an honor to have you here.”
Oliver O’Connell28 February 2025 17:10
President Donald Trump says: “I hope I’m going to be remembered as a peacemaker… I’m doing this to save lives — more than anything else… this could lead to a third world war. This was headed in the wrong direction.”
He adds: “It’s a pathway to peace. It’s a pathway to getting something solved. I feel that as the head of this country that I have an obligation to do that… It’s too bad we got involved because there should’ve been no involvement because there should’ve been no war.”
Oliver O’Connell28 February 2025 17:05