Zelenskyy may have to quit for Ukraine peace talks to go ahead after Trump row, US House Speaker warns
2 March 2025, 15:02
Volodymyr Zelenskyy may have to resign from the Ukrainian presidency for peace talks to go ahead after his row with Donald Trump, the top US Congressman has warned.
Listen to this article
Loading audio...
Mike Johnson, the Republican Speaker of the House of Representatives, said that Mr Zelenskyy "needs to come to his senses and come back to the table in gratitude or someone else needs to lead the country to do that" for any peace talks to go ahead with US support.
Johnson told NBC News: "President Trump is trying to get these two parties to a point of peace
"What President Zelenskyy did in the White House was effectively signal to us that he’s not ready for that yet and I think that’s a great disappointment."
The explosive row on Friday saw Trump and his vice-president JD Vance berate Zelenskyy in front of the world's media for not being grateful enough for US support.
Trump warned his Ukrainian counterpart that he was gambling with World War Three.
Johnson said that Zelenskyy "berated and interrupted his host, instead of expressing gratitude for the extraordinary help that the U.S. has provided his country."
The row triggered a diplomatic crisis, with the UK and European leaders now scrambling to act as mediators between Trump and Zelenskyy to help end the war with a favourable settlement for Ukraine.
The US is by far Ukraine's single largest backer in the war with Russia, although European countries collectively have provided more.
While Trump's outburst on Zelenskyy has met with a mixed reaction in the US, in the UK and Europe Zelenskyy has received an outpouring of support.
But Starmer and his fellow European leaders face a difficult diplomatic tightrope: continuing to support Ukraine without criticising Trump.
Ministers on Sunday reiterated that the US remains the UK's most important ally, while saying that the spat made for "uncomfortable" viewing.
The disastrous meeting also meant that a deal that would give the US access to valuable Ukrainian minerals remained unsigned. Zelenskyy is said to be unhappy with the deal, as it does not give him guarantees of US security.
Lewis Goodall gets hung on up on by former Trump adviser over Ukraine row
But Johnson said: "This mineral rights deal is a win, a win for everyone. It will give us access to rare earth minerals that we need, and it will provide a level of security for Ukraine.”
"They will effectively be in an economic partnership with us after that point, and we will definitely always defend our interests and our investments.
"Russia knows that. China knows that. Iran, North Korea know that, and that’s a very important message for us.”
