“The free world needs a new leader”, the EU’s foreign policy chief has warned, hitting back at Donald Trump after his explosive Oval Office clash with Volodymyr Zelensky.
EU leaders threw their weight behind the Ukrainian president on Friday evening after the shocking confrontation between the two leaders, which saw Mr Trump claim Mr Zelensky is not “ready for peace”, as well as accusing him of “gambling with world war three”.
But Kaja Kallas, the EU high representative for foreign affairs and security policy, went one step further, suggesting that Mr Trump is no longer fit to lead the free world.
“Ukraine is Europe! We stand by Ukraine. We will step up our support to Ukraine so that they can continue to fight back the aggressor”, Ms Kallas posted to social media.
“Today, it became clear that the free world needs a new leader. It’s up to us, Europeans, to take this challenge”.
Her comments came after EU Commission chief Ursula Von der Leyen said Mr Zelensky’s “dignity honours the bravery of the Ukrainian people”.
“Be strong, be brave, be fearless. You are never alone”, she added, addressing the Ukrainian leader directly on social media.
Sir Keir Starmer – who spoke to both Mr Zelensky and Mr Trump on the phone after the meeting - declared his “unwavering support” for Ukraine.
The prime minister is “doing all he can to find a path forward to a lasting peace based on sovereignty and security for Ukraine,” a Downing Street spokesperson said, adding that he looked forward to hosting the Ukrainian president in London at the weekend.
Just days after Sir Keir visited the US and held talks with Mr Trump, the prime minister will host Mr Zelensky and other European leaders in Downing Street on Sunday.
Sir Keir’s calls with the two leaders came after shadow justice secretary Robert Jenrick said Winston Churchill, whose bust sits in the Oval Office, would be “turning in his grave if he saw that happen”.
“I’m sickened by that degrading spectacle,” Mr Jenrick said in a post on social media platform X.
“Ukraine’s people, led by President Zelenskyy, have fought bravely to hold off Putin over the last three years with US and European support. Zelenskyy has shown sincere gratitude for the support offered by his partners. We salute him and the courageous Ukrainians as they fight for freedom against Russian imperialism.”
In an apparent rebuke to the US president, the senior opposition MP said countries’ leaders could disagree, “but the West must show a united front to our enemies”.
On Friday evening, Mr Zelensky refused to apologise over the extraordinary clash with Mr Trump, but insisted the relationship can be repaired.
"I'm not sure we did something bad. I think maybe some things we have to discuss out of media”, he told Fox News after the meeting.
The two leaders abandoned plans to sign a minerals deal which would have given further US military support in exchange for access to Ukraine’s natural resources.
The row comes after weeks in which the relationship between Washington and Kyiv has soured.
Mr Trump had branded Ukraine’s president a dictator for not holding elections, and locked the war-torn country out of preliminary peace talks with Russia.
