Zelenskyy claims US officials influenced by Russia - as Kremlin confirms Putin portrait gift to Trump
24 March 2025, 18:08
Volodymyr Zelenskyy has claimed US officials have been 'influenced by Russia' - just hours after the Kremlin confirmed that Putin had gifted a portrait of Trump to the President.
Listen to this article
Loading audio...
Speaking on Monday, Zelenskyy referenced President Trump’s willingness to repeat Kremlin claims that thousands of Ukrainian troops had been encircled in western Russia’s Kursk region.
“That was a lie,” Zelensky said against a backdrop that confirmed US intelligence agencies, including the CIA, had told Trump this was not the case.
"I believe Russia has managed to influence some people on the White House team through information …
He added: "Their signal to the Americans was that the Ukrainians do not want to end the war, and something should be done to force them.”
The comments coincide with US special envoy, Steve Witkoff, confirming reports over the weekend that Putin had commissioned an artist to paint a portrait of Trump as a gift.
Read more: Heathrow boss to be hauled in and quizzed by MPs following airport shutdown
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov also confirmed the gift on Monday.
The reports come as three people were killed and 12 wounded in a Russian drone attack on the Ukrainian city of Zaporizhzhia on Monday.
Ukrainian officials said Russian drones pummelled the city of Odesa overnight - injuring 3 people and sparking massive fires.
It added that the attack underlined Moscow's intention to continue aerial strikes despite agreeing to a limited ceasefire.
The Kremlin added on Monday that there was a "common understanding" between the US and Russia.
It comes as as negotiators continue talks in Saudi Arabia about a ceasefire in Ukraine.
According to Witkoff, the presidential gift came as he branded Putin “super smart” and not “a bad guy.”
Confirming reports from the weekend, Peskov said Putin did indeed send Trump a portrait of himself as a "personal gift".
On Saturday, following the latest Russian attack, Regional head Ivan Fedorov said "residential buildings, private cars, and social infrastructure facilities were set on fire" in the attack on Friday night, and published photos showing emergency services scouring the rubble of damaged residential buildings for survivors.
The Ukrainian air force reported that Russia fired 179 exploding drones and decoys in the latest wave of attacks overnight into Saturday.
It said 100 were intercepted and another 63 "lost," likely having been electronically jammed.
Officials in the Kyiv and Dnipropetrovsk regions also reported fires breaking out due to the falling debris from intercepted drones.
Russia's Ministry of Defence, meanwhile, said its air defence systems shot down 47 Ukrainian drones.
Ukraine and Russia agreed in principle on Wednesday to a limited ceasefire after US President Donald Trump spoke with the countries' leaders, though it remains to be seen what possible targets would be off limits to attack.
The three sides appeared to hold starkly different views about what the deal covered.
While the White House said "energy and infrastructure" would be part of the agreement, the Kremlin declared that the agreement referred more narrowly to "energy infrastructure".
Mr Zelensky said he would also like railways and ports to be protected.
The Ukrainian leader told reporters after Wednesday's call with Mr Trump that Ukraine and US negotiators will discuss technical details related to the partial ceasefire during a meeting in Saudi Arabia on Monday.
Russian negotiators are also set to hold separate talks with US officials there.
Mr Zelenskyy emphasised that Ukraine is open to a full, 30-day ceasefire that Mr Trump has proposed, saying: "We will not be against any format, any steps toward unconditional ceasefire."
Russian President Vladimir Putin has made a complete ceasefire conditional on a halt of arms supplies to Kyiv and a suspension of Ukraine's military mobilisation - demands rejected by Ukraine and its Western allies.
