Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has sparked controversy with his recent comments, claiming it would be “more dangerous” for President Donald Trump to speak with Russian President Vladimir Putin before addressing Ukraine’s concerns. This remark raises eyebrows and reflects growing tension as Zelensky navigates his relationship with both U.S. political parties while trying to secure continued support in the war against Russia.
Zelensky, likely frustrated by the end of his close relationship with former President Joe Biden, is now lecturing Trump—who brought hostages home from Gaza, ended a war, and was the first president to avoid new conflicts—on how to handle peace negotiations.
The Ukrainian President expressed frustration to reporters upon learning he would be excluded from the peace talks with Russia, calling it "dangerous" and stating he was unhappy with the decision.
“I think that more dangerous if first meeting will be with Putin and then with Ukraine. There are things I shared with the President Trump that, first of all, we have to see common view,” he said. “I said also that at the table, we need Europe also. It’s very important for us. We are in Europe, and we see our future only in EU, like a member.”
Earlier this week, Trump said that during separate phone calls with him, Zelenskiy and Putin expressed a strong desire for peace. The U.S. president noted that three senior foreign policy aides in his administration would soon meet with Putin, likely in Saudi Arabia, to discuss peace negotiations to finally end the ongoing conflict with Ukraine.
This comes as Zelensky said on NBC’s “Meet the Press” that he believes Putin will wage war against NATO countries.
“We see how he is preparing to train mostly on the territory of Belarus,” he said. “We know for sure that he is preparing that from the territory of Belarus this year. It can happen in summer, maybe in the beginning, maybe in the end of summer. I do not know when he prepares it. But it will happen. And at that moment. knowing that he did not succeed in occupying us, we do not know where he will go. There are risks that this can be Poland and Lithuania because we believe – we believe that Putin will wage war against NATO.”
Zelensky voiced concerns that reducing the U.S. military presence in Europe could weaken NATO and make the European continent more vulnerable to Russian aggression. He believes Putin is relying on this situation and may contemplate invading former Soviet republics that are now NATO members.
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