By Katherine Tinsley
11:24am PST, Mar 5, 2025
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The U.S. has been Ukraine's ally for years, but Trump hoped to persuade Zelensky to end his battle against Russia.
"President Zelensky, unfortunately, was ungrateful to the American taxpayer," she said, but the former entertainer has publicly thanked America for its contributions about 33 times.
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Following their tense conversation, the White House announced the U.S. would stop giving funds to Ukraine.
"And frankly, putting aside my job as President Trump's spokeswoman, as an American citizen, it was incredibly profound to watch our president actually stand up for us, for the taxpaying American, law-abiding citizen who is sick and tired of seeing hundreds of billions of dollars go out the door every single year when we have real problems in our country here," Leavitt told Fox News.
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Leavitt later attempted to paint Zelensky as combative.
"Unfortunately, President Zelensk is not in the mindset to negotiate peace," the professional claimed.
"And I think, frankly, it was incredibly refreshing to watch the president and the vice president stand up for America and to have that be before the world to see," she added.
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White House deputy chief of staff for policy Stephen Miller seemed to support Trump's antics.
"[T]his is one of the great moments in the history of American diplomacy," Miller said in a statement.
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A White House official told the Associated Press Trump is "committed" to developing a peace deal between Russia and Ukraine.
However, the U.S. is "pausing and reviewing" its aid to the Ukraine in an attempt to "ensure that it is contributing to a solution."
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After being asked to leave the White House, Zelensky took to X to defend himself.
"I would like to reiterate Ukraine's commitment to peace. None of us wants an endless war," he wrote. "Ukraine is ready to come to the negotiating table as soon as possible to bring lasting peace closer."
"Nobody wants peace more than Ukrainians," he noted. "My team and I stand ready to work under President Trump's strong leadership to get a peace that lasts."
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"We do really value how much America has done to help Ukraine maintain its sovereignty and independence," he continued after Trump and J.D. Vance painted him as ungrateful.
"And we remember the moment when things changed when President Trump provided Ukraine with Javelins," Zelensky pointed out. "We are grateful for this."
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In his message, Zelensky was open to reconnecting with Trump.
"Our meeting in Washington, at the White House on Friday, did not go the way it was supposed to be," he admitted. "It is regrettable that it happened this way. It is time to make things right. We would like future cooperation and communication to be constructive."
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During their chat, the former star of The Celebrity Apprentice became agitated with Zelensky.
"You're gambling with World War III, and what you're doing is very disrespectful to this country," Trump reportedly said to Zelensky.
"You either make a deal or we are out," Trump stressed.
