Trump Holds Meeting to Discuss Possibility of Cutting Off Ukraine: Report

Speculation has surged to fill the enormous gap of uncertainty left in the wake of a dramatic confrontation on Friday between Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and President Donald Trump. This whirlwind of rumors now includes reports that Trump could be considering cutting off aid to Ukraine entirely.

Russia invaded Ukraine on Feb. 24, 2022, triggering initial fears that Ukraine’s resistance would crumble within weeks. However, the flood of military and financial support — amounting to billions of dollars — allowed Ukraine to stand firm against its much larger adversary. While the Biden administration readily funneled aid into the conflict, Trump has consistently expressed a far more skeptical stance.

Tensions between Trump and Zelenskyy appeared to boil over during a Friday meeting in the Oval Office. After a heated exchange, Zelenskyy abruptly left Washington, casting doubt on the future of U.S.-Ukraine cooperation.

According to Axios, which published a report on Monday citing unnamed sources, the dispute was so severe that Trump planned to meet that same day to deliberate whether all military assistance to Ukraine should be suspended.

The Axios report has not been independently confirmed, but Trump’s frustration with Zelenskyy was evident in a fiery Truth Social post that followed Zelenskyy’s remark suggesting the war’s end remained far off.

“This is the worst statement that could have been made by Zelenskyy, and America will not put up with it for much longer!” Trump declared.

“It is what I was saying, this guy doesn’t want there to be Peace as long as he has America’s backing and, Europe, in the meeting they had with Zelenskyy, stated flatly that they cannot do the job without the U.S. — Probably not a great statement to have been made in terms of a show of strength against Russia. What are they thinking?” Trump added.

On Truth Social, Trump also pushed back against claims that his clash with Zelenskyy somehow benefited Russia.

“The only President who gave none of Ukraine’s land to Putin’s Russia is President Donald J. Trump. Remember that when the weak and ineffective Democrat’s criticize, and the Fake News gladly puts out anything they say!” Trump wrote.

Originally, the purpose of Friday’s meeting had been for Zelenskyy to sign an agreement granting the United States certain rights to Ukraine’s rare earth minerals. However, the Oval Office confrontation derailed those plans.

Despite the fallout, the BBC reported that Zelenskyy appears willing to return to the White House for another attempt at negotiating the rare earth minerals deal.

Meanwhile, National Security Adviser Mike Waltz told NBC that the Trump administration remains open to discussing peace with Ukraine.

“We’re ready to have those conversations. We had it with the Russians in Riyadh. We’re ready to have it with the Ukrainians and then engage in shuttle diplomacy. But we need to hear that latter piece from Zelenskyy, and we need to hear it publicly,” Waltz explained.

“What we need to hear from President Zelenskyy is that he has regret for what happened, he’s ready to sign this minerals deal, and that he’s ready to engage in peace talks,” Waltz said. “I don’t think that’s too much to ask.”