Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, emphasising the importance of U.S. backing, said he wanted the U.S. to "stand more firmly on our side" after the strained Oval Office exchange with U.S. President Donald Trump on Friday.
After arriving in the UK to take part in a European leaders' summit and bolster support, Zelenskyy urged the US to continue its support for Ukraine despite "the tough dialogue" between the two. It came after a fiery war of words at the Oval Office in which Trump told Zelensky to make a deal with Russia "or we are out", while U.S. Vice-President JD Vance accused him of being thankless. He posted on his X page, "We are very grateful to the United States for all the support. I'm thankful to President Trump, Congress for their bipartisan support, and American people. Ukrainians have always appreciated this support, especially during these three years of full-scale invasion.
"Our relationship with the American President is more than just two leaders, it's a historic and solid bond between our peoples. That's why I always begin with words of gratitude from our nation to the American nation," he said. Expressing hopes of securing U.S. support, he added "We are truely thankful. We want only strong relations with America, and I really hope we will have them".
On Saturday, Zelensky thanked UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer for "meaningful and warm meeting" and said "we discusssed the challenges facing Ukraine and all of Europe, coordination with partners, concrete steps to strengthen Ukraine's position", and ending the war along with robust security guarantees. During the meeting, Ukraine and the UK signed a pact for £2.26 billion loan to Kyiv. Zelenskyy said this will loan will enhance Ukraine's defence capabilities and will be repaid using revenues from frozen Russian assets as "the one who started the war must be the one to pay". The funds will be directed towards weapons production in Ukraine. "I thank the people and government of the United Kingdom for their tremendous support from the very beginning of the war." Ukrainians are happy to have such stretegic partners and to share the same vision of what a secure future should look like for all, he said.
The leaders of Germany, France, Spain, Poland, Switzerland and the Netherlands were among those who posted social media messages backing Ukraine - with Zelensky responding directly to each one to thank them for their support.