The Independent Uganda: You get the Truth we Pay the Price
Washington, US | THE INDEPENDENT | The Oval Office meeting between U.S. President Donald Trump and visiting Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky over a peace deal with Russia got heated. After niceties, here is where it got off the rail as captured by @Last_DayWithYou on twitter
ZELENSKY: Putin broke the ceasefire. What kind of diplomacy, JD, are you even talking about?
VP JD VANCE: I think it’s disrespectful to come into the Oval Office and try to litigate this in front of the American media.
ZELENSKY: Disrespectful? My country is under attack, millions displaced, thousands killed—and you’re worried about optics?
TRUMP: Look, we have to be smart. We can’t just keep giving you blank checks.
ZELENSKY: Blank checks? Every dollar goes to defending our people from an invasion. Meanwhile, you have no problem giving tax cuts to billionaires.
TRUMP: We need accountability. Americans want to know where their money is going.
ZELENSKY: It’s going to keeping democracy alive. You talk about ‘America First,’ but if Ukraine falls, Russia doesn’t stop here.
VANCE: We just think Ukraine needs to be realistic.
ZELENSKY: Realistic? Russia is committing war crimes. They’re kidnapping our children, bombing hospitals, executing civilians. Should we be ‘realistic’ and just accept that?
TRUMP: Look, if I was president before, this never would’ve happened.
ZELENSKY: Because you would’ve handed Ukraine over. That’s not strength—it’s appeasement.
TRUMP: Putin respects me. We would’ve had peace in 24 hours.
ZELENSKY: Peace or surrender? Because your idea of peace is giving Putin exactly what he wants.
ZELENSKYY: Putin broke the ceasefire. What kind of diplomacy, JD, are you speaking about?
VANCE: I think it’s disrespectful to come into the Oval Office and try to litigate this in front of the American media pic.twitter.com/P5Qjz1AGi5
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) February 28, 2025
TRUMP: You don’t have the cards right now. You have to be thankful.
ZELENSKY: Thankful? For what? For being forced to beg for support while Russia slaughters my people?
TRUMP: We’re just saying, you need to be flexible.
ZELENSKY: No, I need weapons, air defenses, security guarantees—not another fake deal where Ukraine loses everything.
Zelenskyy: “When they, for example say that Ukraine is almost destroyed, that our soldiers run away, that they are not heroes, that the president is a dictator, what is the reaction? It’s not about me. The reaction is, where is the friendship between Ukraine and the US?” pic.twitter.com/zx5VWSEUlT
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) February 28, 2025
VANCE: Well, this isn’t Ukraine’s war alone. It’s costing Americans billions.
ZELENSKY: And what happens when Russia wins and moves west? Do you think stopping them gets cheaper later?
TRUMP: I don’t like endless wars.
ZELENSKY: Endless? This war only drags on because Russia refuses to stop. Not because Ukraine won’t fight.
TRUMP: Well, we have to look at America’s interests.
ZELENSKY: America’s interests? You let Putin win, you destroy NATO, you embolden China, you weaken America’s alliances. That’s not putting America first. That’s handing it over.
RELATED STORY
TRUMP VS ZELENSKY: What it was like in the room during Oval Office shouting match
