Not a matter of priority. Zelenskyy reacts to Trump calling Putin first
Photo: Volodymyr Zelenskyy, President of Ukraine (Vitalii Nosach, RBC-Ukraine)
US President Donald Trump initially called Russian President Vladimir Putin not because it was a priority for him, states President Volodymyr Zelenskyy during his visit to the Khmelnytskyi nuclear power plant.
"As for the conversation, he knows my thoughts. I truly believe that Ukraine should be the priority, as we are at war. Although he said he wanted to speak with both presidents simultaneously, he did not say that Putin and Russia were his priorities," Zelenskyy explained.
According to the president, he trusts Trump's words because maintaining Washington's support is crucial for Ukraine. He also added that he has already had three conversations with the White House leader in total.
"Although, indeed, this (the fact that Trump called Putin first – ed.) is not very pleasant in any case. Because you know how Ukrainian society and Europeans react — that Ukraine should come first, and nothing about Ukraine can happen without Ukraine," Zelenskyy noted.
Trump’s calls to Putin and Zelenskyy
On December 12, US President Trump called President Putin and then spoke with President Zelenskyy. During an address in the Oval Office, the Republican stated that Ukraine’s return to its 2014 borders is supposedly unlikely.
Meanwhile, Ukraine’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Andrii Sybiha, noted that Kyiv and Europe must not be excluded from future negotiations on ending the full-scale war in Ukraine.
