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US President Donald Trump said on Tuesday that he wanted his Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelenskyy to “make a deal” with Russia as he complained that the United States had received “nothing back” for its support for Kyiv.
Speaking to the media in the White House, Trump said: “We want Zelenskyy to make a deal. He can make a deal.”
“He could have made a deal two years ago when we had our little chat in the Oval Office,” he continued, seemingly referencing the pair’s heated exchange during a meeting in early 2025. “He’s going to have to want to make a deal, because I don’t think his people are going to stand for it any longer.”
Zelenskyy and Trump have endured a volatile relationship since the US president began his second term in January last year, but it has soured further in recent weeks after Trump struck a diesel deal with Russian President Vladimir Putin and criticised the impact of Ukrainian strikes on Russia’s energy sector on global fuel prices.
On Tuesday, Trump – who is gearing up for key midterm elections to determine the make-up of Congress for his final two years in office – seemed to pin the blame for the ongoing war on Zelenskyy, repeatedly saying he had had the opportunity to make a deal and that the US had got nothing in return for its help “except grief, death,” and “tremendous monetary loss.”
“We have given tremendous amounts to Ukraine; we’ve got nothing back. Other than high diesel,” Trump added. “The American taxpayers are tired of it.”
“It’s time to make a deal,” he said.
Zelenskyy’s Oslo talks
Trump’s comments came shortly after Zelenskyy met with a US delegation headed by special envoy Steve Witkoff, who is scheduled to travel to Russia for a meeting with Putin on Wednesday.
Following the talks in Oslo, which also involved Finnish President Alexander Stubb and Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre, Zelenskyy had appeared relatively positive, telling journalists he had recently held a constructive call with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and calling for a trilateral meeting with Trump and Putin.
Zelenskyy also addressed reported restrictions on US intelligence sharing during a press conference with the Nordic leaders, saying he was “thankful” that “intelligence works now.”
“I’m speaking about early warning, what is very important for our people, for children, adults, civilians, because we can hear when ballistic is coming,” he said.
In a post on social media later in the evening, Zelenskyy added: “It was constructive because all of us want peace – Ukraine, Europe, the United States. And we will see what happens tomorrow.”