U.S. President Donald Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky held an extraordinarily contentious meeting at the White House on Friday. Trump and Vice President J.D. Vance tag-teamed Zelensky on their own turf, lambasting the Ukrainian leader as they pressured him to embrace diplomacy with Russia.
The meeting became especially heated after Zelensky underscored the Kremlin’s history of unreliability when it comes to respecting international agreements—pointing to Russia’s violation of a 2019 cease-fire with Ukraine. Vance then jumped in to scold Zelensky, saying, “I think it’s disrespectful for you to come to the Oval Office and try to litigate this in front of the American media.”
U.S. President Donald Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky held an extraordinarily contentious meeting at the White House on Friday. Trump and Vice President J.D. Vance tag-teamed Zelensky on their own turf, lambasting the Ukrainian leader as they pressured him to embrace diplomacy with Russia.
The meeting became especially heated after Zelensky underscored the Kremlin’s history of unreliability when it comes to respecting international agreements—pointing to Russia’s violation of a 2019 cease-fire with Ukraine. Vance then jumped in to scold Zelensky, saying, “I think it’s disrespectful for you to come to the Oval Office and try to litigate this in front of the American media.”
The U.S. leaders accused Zelensky of being ungrateful for the aid Washington had provided to Ukraine. Zelensky was visiting Washington to sign a minerals deal, which Trump said will help recoup the U.S. for the assistance it’s given to Ukraine. But after the war of words in the Oval Office on Friday, the White House said the agreement was not signed and its future is now uncertain.
Trump’s and Vance’s handling of the meeting prompted swift, widespread criticism and a wave of messages of support for Ukraine and Zelensky from many corners, including Democrats, Ukraine’s European allies, and even some of Trump’s former advisors. Meanwhile, some of Trump’s Republican allies praised his and Vance’s actions as demonstrating “America First” leadership.
The reactions were indicative of the shocking nature of the meeting and just how drastically the United States’ approach to the Ukraine war—and foreign relations more generally—has shifted since Trump re-entered the White House a little over a month ago.
Former Trump advisors and Democrats slam the president
John Bolton, who served as national security advisor in Trump’s first administration (and has since become a frequent critic of the president), ripped into the commander in chief and his vice president over Friday’s events.
“Trump and Vance have declared themselves to be on Russia’s side in the Russo-Ukraine war,” Bolton said on X. “This is a catastrophic mistake for America’s national security. And let’s be clear: Trump and Vance now personally own that policy. It is not the view of a majority of Americans of either or no political party.”
H.R. McMaster, who also served as a national security advisor in the first Trump administration, said it’s “impossible to understand” why Trump and Vance “seem determined to put more pressure on President Zelensky while they seem to be coddling Putin—the person who inflicted this terrible war in Ukraine.”
Democratic Sen. Jeanne Shaheen of New Hampshire, the ranking member on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, in a post on X said the “outrageous display” from Trump and Vance was “disgraceful” and “downright un-American.” Shaheen accused Trump of siding with “a murderous thug, Putin, over our democratic ally, Ukraine.”
Sen. Chris Murphy of Connecticut, who also sits on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and is among the most outspoken Democrats in the upper chamber when it comes to foreign policy, said the meeting was an “utter embarrassment for America.”
Europe lines up behind Zelensky
World leaders also quickly chimed in on Friday, expressing solidarity with Kyiv in what could be viewed as veiled swipes at Trump and his America First approach to global affairs.
“We should respect those who have been fighting since the beginning,” French President Emmanuel Macron said Friday in Portugal following the fireworks at the Trump-Zelensky meeting. Macron, who met with Trump at the White House earlier this week—and fact-checked the U.S. leader to his face on European support for Ukraine—also emphasized the importance of remembering that Russia is the “aggressor.”
“Ukraine, you’ll never walk alone,” Lithuanian President Gitanas Nauseda said via X. In a similar post, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez said, “Ukraine, Spain stands with you.” Friedrich Merz, the likely incoming German leader, also said he stands with Zelensky before adding that the “aggressor and victim in this terrible war” must never be confused.
The top diplomats for the Netherlands and Germany issued similar messages of support for Kyiv and the Ukrainian president.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen praised Zelensky for his “dignity” and said the bloc will continue working with him “for a just and lasting peace.”
This all comes as Europe ramps up discussions on how to confront a world in which the U.S. pulls back and won’t guarantee that it will come to the defense of allies, amid sharp criticism from the Trump administration aimed at the EU and NATO.
“The only obstacle to peace is the decision by Russian dictator Vladimir Putin to continue his war of aggression. If Ukraine stops fighting, there will be no Ukraine. Estonia’s support for Ukraine remains unwavering. It is time for Europe to step up. We do not need to wait for something else to happen; Europe has enough resources, including Russia’s frozen assets, to enable Ukraine to continue fighting,” Estonian Foreign Minister Margus Tsahkna said in a statement to Foreign Policy on Friday.
Republicans praise Trump
But not all of the reactions to Friday’s Oval Office meeting were negative. A number of Republicans, including Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, hailed Trump for his performance at the meeting—characterizing it as a fierce defense of the American people.
GOP Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, a close ally of Trump’s, in an appearance on Fox News said he told the president that the meeting with Zelensky was possibly the “best television” he’s ever seen. “I think that Moscow is more afraid than ever,” Graham said.
Special government employee Elon Musk reacted by sharing a post on X, which he owns, with four U.S. flag emojis.
Russia looks on with glee
Meanwhile, Russia appears to be quite pleased with how Zelensky’s trip to Washington played out. Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova said Trump and Vance displayed marvelous “restraint” by not slapping Zelensky, whom she referred to as a “scumbag.”
Former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev, an ally of Putin’s, in a post on X said, “The insolent pig finally got a proper slap down in the Oval Office.” Medvedev added that Trump was “right” to warn Zelensky that “the Kiev regime” is “gambling with WWIII.”
Amid Trump’s rhetorical attacks against Zelensky in recent days, Ukrainians have rallied around him. This trend appears poised to continue following the remarkably testy Oval Office exchanges with Trump and Vance. Ukrainian parliament member Kira Rudik on Friday said she can’t imagine the “pressure” Zelensky is under, wishing him “wisdom” and the “knowledge his country is behind him.”
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