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Trump ‘Very Frustrated’ With Zelenskyy, US National Security Adviser Says

By Merhat Sharipzhan and Ray Furlong (RFE/RL) -- The White House national security adviser said that U.S. President Donald Trump is "obviously very frustrated" with Volodymyr Zelenskyy and urged the Ukrainian president to reach an agreement soon granting the United States access to Ukraine's critical minerals. The remarks from Michael Waltz came after Zelenskyy and Trump traded sharp criticism in recent days, with Trump calling Zelenskyy a "dictator" and suggesting he started the war with Russia -- comments that caused concern in Ukraine and Europe and prompted pushback from some senior U.S. Republican lawmakers. A day earlier, Zelenskyy rejected a proposal that would reportedly hand the United States $500 billion in mineral wealth, including rare-earth elements, as a form of payment for U.S. military and financial support for Kyiv's defense against Russia's full-scale invasion, which enters its fourth year next week. "He needs to come back to the table," Waltz said at a press conference at the White House on February 20. Zelenskyy has pointed out that U.S. wartime aid so far was far less than that amount and that the U.S. proposal did not offer concrete security guarantees. Trump's harshest criticism to date of Zelenskyy came after Zelenskyy charged that Trump was pushing “a lot of information that is coming from Russia” and that the United States was helping Russia "break out of years of isolation" by holding high-level talks in Riyadh on February 18 and moving toward normalizing relations. The bilateral U.S.-Russia talks, on the war in Ukraine and other issues, stoked worried in Ukraine and among some of its backers that Kyiv could be sidelined from negotiations and pressured to accept a cease-fire or peace deal that would favor Russia. French President Emmanuel Macron said he will travel to Washington, where he will urge Trump to stand up to Russian President Vladimir Putin and try to convince him that the interests of the United States and Europe are in line with one another. "I will tell him: deep down you cannot be weak in the face of [Putin]," Macron said. The White House said that Trump will host Macron on February 24 and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer on February 27. Zelenskyy struck a conciliatory tone following what he called a "productive meeting" on February 20 with Trump's special envoy for Ukraine and Russia, Keith Kellogg, who is on his first visit to Ukraine. The pair had "a good discussion, [covering] many important details," Zelenskyy wrote in a post on X. "I am grateful to the United States for all the assistance and bipartisan support for Ukraine and the Ukrainian people." "Ukraine is ready for a strong, effective investment and security agreement with the President of the United States," he wrote, adding, "Strong Ukraine-U.S. relations benefit the entire world." However, a joint press conference by Zelenskyy and Kellogg was canceled, and there was no immediate comment from Kellogg after the meeting. Meanwhile, several senior U.S. Republican lawmakers have been pushing back against Trump's recent criticism of Zelenskyy. They worry that signaling a willingness to cut off support for Kyiv could embolden Putin. Trump's framing of Zelenskyy in negative terms stands in stark contrast to those Senate Republicans who view Ukraine as a victim of Russian aggression. They voiced strong support for Ukraine on February 19 and warned against appeasing Moscow. Senator John Kennedy (Republican-Louisiana) did not mince words when addressing the threat posed by Putin, describing him as "a gangster with a black heart...who makes Jeffrey Dahmer (a notorious serial killer) look like Mother Teresa." "It is Vladimir Putin who started the war." Kennedy said. "I also believe through bitter experience that Vladimir Putin is a gangster…. He has Stalin's taste for blood." Senator Roger Wicker (Republican-Mississippi) echoed Kennedy's concerns, saying that talks to end Russia's invasion of Ukraine must be held with Ukrainians being involved while also taking account of European interests. "Putin is a war criminal and should be in jail for the rest of his life, if not executed," he said. At least seven people were killed and 30 injured over the past 24 hours due to Russian attacks, regional military officials said on February 20. Targets included residential areas, social infrastructure, and essential services. Children were among the injured. After Trump called Zelenskyy a "dictator without elections," the head of the Ukrainian Central Election Commission, Oleh Didenko, said in an interview with RFE/RL's Ukrainian Service, that talk of elections in Ukraine only benefits Russia. “This issue is being raised in order to undermine the legitimacy of the government in Ukraine, to weaken confidence in the government, to weaken support for Ukraine from international partners,” he said. Trump also wrote that "we are successfully negotiating an end to the War with Russia." He added that Zelenskyy “better move fast or he is not going to have a Country left.” Trump’s remarks came after Zelenskyy accused Trump of living in a Russian “disinformation bubble” and said he would like Trump’s team to be “more truthful.” Senator Thom Tillis (Republican-North Carolina) disagreed with Trump's characterization of Zelenskyy as a "dictator," although he avoided directly criticizing Trump. "It's not a word I would use," he said, adding that there is "no moral equivalency between Vladimir Putin and President Zelenskyy." "Clearly, Vladimir Putin is responsible for this war," Tillis told reporters in Washington on February 19. "His decision has resulted in the murder, rape, torture and kidnapping of untold numbers of Ukrainians. He owns responsibility for this war." Senate Majority Leader John Thune (Republican-North Dakota) also declined to criticize Trump for his remarks. "The president speaks for himself," he told reporters. "I think what I'm in support of is a peaceful outcome and result in Ukraine… And I think right now, the administration, the president and his team are working to achieve that." Although Zelenskyy's presidential mandate was due to expire in May 2024, the constitution bars elections under martial law, which was imposed when Russia launched its full-scale invasion and has repeatedly extended.