Zelensky ‘apologised to President Trump for fiery Oval office meeting’

Zelensky ‘apologised to President Trump for fiery Oval office meeting’

Metro

Story by Steve Charnock, Jessica Kwong

11/03/2025

젤렌스키는 ' 격렬한 대통령 집무실 회의에 대해 트럼프 대통령에게 사과했다'

스티브 차넉(Steve Charnock), 제시카 쿵(Jessica Kwong)의 이야기

Zelensky ‘apologised to President Trump for fiery Oval office meeting’

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky reportedly ended up apologising to US President Donald Trump for the fiery Oval Office meeting that resulted in his departure without a deal. Trump’s special envoy to the Middle East, Steve Witkoff, claimed that Zelensky said sorry and that the gesture marked ‘progress’ in ongoing Russia-Ukraine war peace talks the US has been involved in (Picture: Getty Images)

젤렌스키는 '격렬한 대통령 집무실 회의에 대해 트럼프 대통령에게 사과했다'

볼로디미르 젤렌스키 우크라이나 대통령이 도널드 트럼프 미국 대통령에게 격렬한 대통령 집무실 회의에 대해 사과한 것으로 알려졌다. 트럼프의 중동 특사인 스티브 위트코프는 젤렌스키가 미안하다고 말했고 그 제스처는 미국이 관여하고 있는 러시아-우크라이나 전쟁 평화 회담에서 '진전'을 표시했다고 주장했다 (사진: Getty Images)

Zelensky ‘apologised to President Trump for fiery Oval office meeting’

‘Zelensky sent a letter to the president. He apologised for that whole incident that happened in the Oval Office,’ Witkoff told Fox News on Monday. ‘I think that it was an important step, and there’s been a lot of discussion between our teams and the Ukrainians and the Europeans who are relevant to this discussion as well’ (Picture: Getty Images)

 

Zelensky ‘apologised to President Trump for fiery Oval office meeting’

Trump referenced the letter during his address to a joint session of Congress last Tuesday. ‘Ukraine is ready to come to the negotiating table as soon as possible to bring lasting peace closer. Nobody wants peace more than the Ukrainians,’ Trump read from Zelensky’s letter (Picture: Getty Images)

 

Zelensky ‘apologised to President Trump for fiery Oval office meeting’

‘We do really value how much America has done to help Ukraine maintain its sovereignty and independence.’ The US president made no mention of Zelensky’s apology at the time (Picture: EPA)

 

Zelensky ‘apologised to President Trump for fiery Oval office meeting’

Zelensky’s top advisor, Mykhailo Podolyak, told Le Point last week that the Ukrainian president would not apologise. ‘He was absolutely right in form and substance when he tried to convey to our American partners the key idea: nothing will be done without coercion of Russia,’ Podolyak told the French news magazine (Picture: EPA)

 

Zelensky ‘apologised to President Trump for fiery Oval office meeting’

‘Our president tirelessly explains to our partners what this war is and who provoked it… So we will not apologize for a supposed mistake that did not take place.’ The February 28 meeting descended into a shouting match between the presidents and Zelensky was asked to leave the White House without signing a deal that would involve Ukraine providing rare minerals to the US for security guarantees (Picture: AP)

 

Zelensky ‘apologised to President Trump for fiery Oval office meeting’

Shortly after the meeting, Zelensky called it ‘regrettable’ and thanked Trump and the US in an X (Twitter) post, but did not issue a formal apology. Witkoff has since highlighted the importance of talking about security protocols for Ukraine, among other issues, as conversations around a deal continue (Picture: AFP)

 

Zelensky ‘apologised to President Trump for fiery Oval office meeting’

‘These are not complicated things, they just… need to be put on the table and everybody needs to be transparent about what their expectations are,’ Witkoff said. ‘Then we can begin to have a discussion about how we compromise’ (Picture: SAUL LOEB/AFP via Getty Images)