Trump And Vance Attack Zelenskyy In Remarkable Oval Office Exchange

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy came to Washington optimistic that signing President Donald Trump's desired minerals deal would stabilize their relationship and keep the U.S. on his side.

Turns out he was walking into an ambush.

Trump and Vice President JD Vance both turned on the embattled wartime leader during a remarkably tense exchange in the Oval Office on Friday, accusing Zelenskyy of failing to express sufficient gratitude for U.S. involvement and overplaying what they said was a weak diplomatic hand.

“You’ve done enough talking. You’re not winning this,” Trump said, raising his voice to Zelenskyy. “You have a damn good chance of coming out okay because of us.”

The fireworks started more than 40 minutes into what had been a cordial conversation about the economic agreement the two countries planned to sign and vague assurances from Trump about the U.S. standing with Ukraine if and when its war with Russia ends.

Vance, who’d been sitting quietly, took issue with the Ukrainian president’s criticism of Russian President Vladimir Putin, who Zelenskyy referred to as a “terrorist” known for breaking his word as he pleaded for American military backing before a phalanx of TV cameras and journalists.

“I think it’s disrespectful for you to come into the Oval Office, litigating in front of the American media,” Vance told Zelenskyy. “Right now, you guys are going around and forcing conscripts to the front lines because you have manpower problems, you should be thanking the president for trying to bring an end to this conflict.”

Trump, who had earlier lauded Ukraine’s courage throughout the war and left the door open to the U.S. providing security guarantees, grew more animated as Zelenskyy tangled with Vance, who dismissed his invitation to come see the war in person as a “propaganda tour” aimed at maintaining the West’s financial support.