As the fierce back and forth between US President Donald Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy continues, White House national security adviser Mike Waltz on Thursday said Ukraine should “tone it down, take a hard look and sign that deal.”
High-level US-Russia talks in Saudi Arabia this week—held without Ukraine’s participation—have sparked backlash from Kyiv and European allies, with Zelenskyy vowing his country would not accept any deal made over its head.
The talks, which coincide with continued Russian strikes on Ukraine’s infrastructure, have also exposed growing friction between Zelenskyy and Trump, whose administration is pressuring Kyiv to accept a proposed minerals deal that would grant the US access to valuable natural resources in exchange for economic and security commitments.
Waltz, speaking to Fox Newsurged Ukraine to accept the minerals agreement, calling it a “historic opportunity” for investment and long-term security.
“Pushback from Ukraine on the deal and how Trump is carrying out peace talks is simply unacceptable”, Waltz said but insisted that these difference of views could be reconciled as “the president also said how much he loves the Ukrainian people”.
Waltz also denied that US allies and Ukraine were not being consulted.
US Special Envoy for Ukraine and Russia Keith Kellogg, right, and Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy shake hands during their meeting in Kyiv, Ukraine. (AP photo)
“There’s a term for this in diplomacy. It’s called shuttle diplomacy, because bringing everybody to the table at once just hasn’t worked in the past,” he said in comments reported by Reuters.
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Trump, meanwhile, escalated tensions by calling Zelenskyy a “dictator without elections” and claiming—without evidence—that the Ukrainian leader’s approval rating was as low as 4 per cent. He warned Zelenskyy to “move fast or he is not going to have a country left”.
Zelenskyy dismissed Trump’s comments as misinformation, saying the US President was living in a Russian “disinformation bubble”. His firm stance against the US-Russia talks and minerals deal has drawn criticism from Trump’s vice president, JD Vance, who called Ukraine’s approach to the White House “atrocious.”
The row with the US coincides with a visit to Ukraine by Keith Kelloggthe US envoy for Russia and Ukraine.
‘We are standing strong on our own two feet’
Meanwhile, in what is seen to be a reply to Trump’s “dictator without elections” comment, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said he was counting on Ukrainian and European unity and US pragmatism.
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We are standing strong on our own two feet. I am counting on Ukrainian unity, our courage … on the unity of Europe and the pragmatism of America,” Zelenskyy told Ukrainians in his video address late on Wednesday.
“Because America needs success just as much as we do,” he added.
However, even as negotiations unfold, Russia has continued its large-scale strikes against Ukrainian energy infrastructure. On Thursday, Ukraine’s air force reported intercepting 80 of the 161 drones launched overnight, while Russian missiles targeted gas facilities. Ukrainian Energy Minister German Galushchenko condemned the attacks, calling them an attempt to “plunge ordinary Ukrainians into the cold”.
Moscow defended the strikes, claiming they were aimed at Ukraine’s “military-industrial complex”. Despite ongoing diplomatic efforts, Russia’s campaign of bombardments shows no sign of easing.
(With Inputs from Reuters, Associated Press)
