The Hague [Netherlands], June 26: US President Donald Trump has said his meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on the sidelines of a NATO summit "couldn't have been nicer."
When asked during a post-summit press conference about his meeting with the Ukrainian leader, Trump said it was "very nice," admitting "we had a little rough times sometimes."
Trump and Zelensky clashed in a tense and highly public Oval Office meeting in February, broadcast live, when the US president accused the Ukrainain of "gambling with World War III." After that meeting, Washington temporarily suspended military aid to Ukraine including vital battlefield intelligence, and a minerals deal was initially left unsigned.
Relations appeared to have since thawed, with Trump and Zelensky meeting one-on-one on the sidelines of pope Francis' funeral in April.
Unlike at last year's summit, Zelensky was not invited to attend formal consultations among leaders but only joined events on the sidelines, in what is believed to reflect US opposition to Ukrainian NATO membership.
In a post on X, Zelensky described the meeting as "long and substantive," saying more details would follow.
Source: Qatar Tribune
