US-Ukraine relations have deteriorated further after Donald Trump said Volodymyr Zelenskyy should consider appointing someone else to negotiate on Kyiv’s behalf in talks aimed at ending Russia’s war.
The US president told reporters outside the White House that his Ukrainian counterpart should have reached a settlement “a long time ago” and criticised him for not accepting his advice.
“Maybe it’s time for Zelenskyy to get somebody else to negotiate,” Mr Trump said.
His remarks came as Mr Zelenskyy told US senators that weapons deliveries and intelligence-sharing had been restricted, with some arms shipments delayed by the Pentagon.
“We also know that … the Pentagon is delaying the delivery of missiles that our partners have already paid for through the PURL (Prioritised Ukraine Requirements List) programme,” the Ukrainian president said.
Mr Zelenskyy added that, to his knowledge, one missile package was awaiting the signature of US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth. He also said several European countries were ready to transfer Patriot interceptor missiles from their own stockpiles but were waiting for approval from Washington.
He described recent decisions by the Trump administration as “hard to explain between friends”, while claiming that Ukraine had not received advance warnings of Russian attacks on three occasions during the past week.
The White House has not indicated that Mr Trump intends to end talks with Moscow. Instead, he has repeatedly criticised Mr Zelenskyy in recent days, saying on Sunday that the Ukrainian leader did not want to end the war.
Earlier this month, Mr Trump called for Mr Zelenskyy to be replaced as president and described him as a “warmonger” over Ukrainian attacks on Russian oil refineries.
The US president has also defended waivers allowing Russia to continue supplying fuel, arguing that keeping Moscow involved was necessary to maintain negotiations. Mr Zelenskyy said the decision would harm Ukraine and strengthen Vladimir Putin’s war effort.
The latest dispute comes before a new round of discussions in Oslo, where Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff is expected to travel this week. Mr Zelenskyy is also expected to attend, alongside Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Store, representatives of the United Kingdom, France, Germany and Poland, the European Union and Nato.
