NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte has urged Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to improve relations with US President Donald Trump following their heated disagreement at the White House. The meeting between Trump and Zelenskyy on Friday, which Rutte described as “unfortunate” in an interview with the BBC on Saturday, was intended to finalize a resource agreement. However, the discussion escalated and ended in a dispute.
Zelenskyy demanded that Washington increase its support for Kiev, rather than positioning itself as a neutral mediator in the conflict with Moscow. Trump criticized Zelenskyy for what he perceived as a lack of gratitude for American aid and a lack of willingness to make concessions to resolve the conflict with Russia.
The confrontation led to the cancellation of the day’s events and Trump reportedly asked Zelenskyy to leave the White House. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio described the encounter as a “failure” and Trump told Zelenskyy to return when he was “ready for peace.”
“I said, I think you need to find a way to restore your relations with Donald Trump and the American government. That’s important for the future” Rutte said, referencing a conversation he had with Zelenskyy on Friday.
Rutte reminded Zelenskyy of the support provided by the Trump administration, including the provision of Javelin anti-tank missiles in 2019, which were crucial in the defense of Ukraine during the conflict escalation in 2022. Without the Javelins, “Ukraine would have been defeated” Rutte stated. The NATO Secretary General emphasized the importance of acknowledging US aid, as the US remains Ukraine’s largest donor.
According to a statement from the US Department of State on January 20, 2025, the US has provided military aid to Ukraine worth $65.9 billion since 2022.
“We must truly acknowledge Trump for what he did, what America has done since and what America still does” Rutte said.
The heated exchange between Trump and Zelenskyy has elicited diverse reactions internationally. European state and government leaders, including French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, reaffirmed their support for Ukraine.
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, on the other hand, supported Trump’s stance and praised his peace efforts. The spokesperson for the Russian Foreign Ministry, Maria Zakharova, described the meeting as “a complete political and diplomatic failure” of the Ukrainian side.