According to a source familiar with the talks, US President Donald Trump’s Russia-Ukraine envoy, Keith Kellogg, advised against Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky meeting with Trump in the Oval Office. Kellogg believed that the relationship between the two countries needed to be strengthened before such a meeting could take place.
Zelensky’s team, on the other hand, was pushing for the White House meeting to happen. The source revealed that during discussions in Kyiv, Kellogg and Zelensky had reached an agreement with one item still pending finalization.
However, things took a turn during the meeting in the Oval Office. A senior US official involved with the talks mentioned that Zelensky's demeanor came across as overly assertive, which did not sit well with everyone present. The official stated, 'Zelensky played it as wrong as he could play it. He came into the Oval acting like a tough guy. It didn’t play well. Everyone in the room felt insulted.'
The official further added, 'Now Zelensky will have to figure out how to fix this on his own. We can’t fix it for him.' The incident highlights the delicate nature of diplomatic relations between the US and Ukraine and the importance of maintaining a respectful and constructive dialogue.
