Volodymyr Zelensky was expecting a personal meeting with the US President Donald Trump, but instead the US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent arrived in Kyiv.
This is reported by CNN.
Zelensky allegedly wanted to discuss his vision for peace in Ukraine face-to-face with Trump. The day before, the US president suggested that he might meet with the Ukrainian leader. Instead, government official Bessent visited Kyiv instead — according to CNN, he offered Zelensky a financial agreement, which he did not sign.
While Bessent was in the Ukrainian capital, it became known about Trumpʼs phone conversation with Putin. It may have been the second time they had contacted each other: the American leader says they had spoken before, but the Kremlin has not confirmed this.
CNN writes that Trump and Putin "set the tone" in the conversation, and Zelensky received a "short squeeze". The US president emphasized that the Russian leader used his campaign slogan of "common sense", Trump suggests that the Kremlin leader is studying him carefully, the publicationʼs journalists say.
- On February 12, Trump called Putin and then Zelensky. After that, Trump announced that he was starting negotiations to end the Russian-Ukrainian war.
- Later, speaking to reporters, Trump suggested that he might meet with Putin in Saudi Arabia. The exact date is unknown, but the meeting could take place in the “near future”. Trump also made it clear that Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman would be involved in the talks. However, Zelensky is unlikely to be invited.
- The US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth is convinced that Donald Trumpʼs talks with Russian leader Vladimir Putin are not a "betrayal" of Ukraine.
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