Quotes
Some of the rhetoric coming out of Kiev, frankly, and insults to President Trump were unacceptable,
U.S. national security advisor Mike Waltz told a Thursday briefing at the White House
We had a detailed conversation about the battlefield situation, how to return our prisoners of war, and effective security guarantees,
Zelensky said on social media after the meetingA Dictator without Elections, Zelensky better move fast or he is not going to have a Country left,
he wrote on his Truth Social platform on Wednesday
First when I heard this, I was like, oh, he must be mixing the two, because clearly Putin is the dictator,
EU's top diplomat Kaja Kallas told reporters in JohannesburgStrong Ukraine-U.S. relations benefit the entire world,
he addedIf you were to get a ceasefire, then a ceasefire is just time for Putin to take a rest and rearm and come back and get the rest of what he wants,
said one of the sources
We are not new to this fight; the only addition is that currently we are facing aggression and misinformation from another side — which is the side of our great ally the United States of America.”
She addedUkrainians feel like they are the only adults left in the room,
Sasha Dovzhyk, director of the Institute for Documentation and Exchange, told Paula Newton on CNN InternationalPresident Trump is obviously very frustrated right now with President Zelensky,
White House national security adviser Mike Waltz said on Thursday
Whoever believes that there is any space for Vladimir Putin and the future of a stable globe, better go to Ukraine, they better go to Europe.” ... They better invest the time to understand that this man is a cancer and the greatest threat to democracy in my lifetime. And it will be a cancer that spreads into the South China Sea, into Taiwan and metastasized across the globe.”
North Carolina’s Thom Tillis ... Tillis went on about PutinUkraine is ready for a strong, effective investment and security agreement with the President of the United States. We have proposed the fastest and most constructive way to achieve results,
he wrote
They need to tone it down and take a hard look and sign that deal,
Waltz told Fox NewsI can't sell our state,
Zelensky said on WednesdayYou really need to sign this,
Bessent reportedly told Zelensky during their meetingIn total, the United States separately gave us about 67 billion U.S. dollars in weapons, and we received 31.5 billion dollars in budget support, ... But one cannot count up to 500 billion dollars and say, 'give us back 500 billion dollars in minerals,' that's not a serious discussion."
he said, addingTrump looked at what Biden did to Poroshenko, and basically said, let's try that. When you show weakness, they always come back for more. Good on Zelensky for standing up for Ukrainian interests and rejecting the deal."
In a post on X, formerly known as Twitter, Oleg Kostour, the founder of Couple App, wrote
I think I'm gonna resurrect it. You know, we'll see what happens, but I'm gonna resurrect it or things are gonna not make him too happy. And look, it's time for elections, haven't had an election in a long time."
Speaking to journalists about the potential rare earth materials deal with Ukraine, Trump said on board Air Force One on WednesdayA lot of meetings and briefings—military command, intelligence, ministers—all in preparation for talks with President Trump's representative, General Kellogg, who is already in Kyiv. Our meeting is scheduled for tomorrow, and it is crucial that this discussion—and our overall cooperation with the U.S.—remains constructive. Together with America and Europe, peace can be more secure, and that is our goal. But most importantly, this goal must be shared by our partners, not just by us."
Zelensky wrote on XHe [Bessent] traveled many hours on the train, which is a dangerous trip, and we're talking about the secretary of the treasury. He went there to get a document signed, and when he got there, he came back empty,
Trump said
The U.S. has not historically used natural resource-for-aid swaps, but it's a tried and tested tool in China's minerals playbook,
said Gracelin Baskaran, director of the critical minerals security program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies