On Feb. 28, a meeting between President Donald Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in the Oval Office grew heated and ended with Zelenskyy leaving early. Following the meeting, a New Mexican Ukrainian organization and a University of New Mexico professor shared their reactions to the clash with the Daily Lobo.
During the meeting, Trump told Zelenskyy, “You’re not acting at all thankful” in reference to the support Ukraine has received from the United States since Russia’s invasion.
Later in the meeting, Vice President JD Vance accused Zelenskyy of running propaganda tours, campaigning for former Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris in Pennsylvania and being ungrateful for U.S. aid.
Zelenskyy then responded, “Have you ever been to Ukraine, that you say what problems we have?”
Mark Peceny, a University of New Mexico professor of political science, called the meeting “disastrous.”
“The meeting between the two was supposed to be a photo meeting, you know, shake hands and be photographed by the press,” Peceny said. “Then they would go into a private meeting where they would talk about the agreement they were supposed to sign.”
U.S. and Ukrainian officials have been negotiating a mineral deal that was scheduled to be signed when Zelenskyy met with Trump, according to the BBC. Zelenskyy left the meeting without signing the deal.
Prior to the meeting, on Feb. 19, Trump called Zelenskyy a “dictator,” according to the BBC.
Trump later said “I can’t believe I said that” when asked by a reporter if he still thought Zelenskyy was a dictator, according to USA Today.
Nataliya Edelman, president of Ukrainian Americans of New Mexico, was shocked to hear that Trump referred to Zelenskyy as a dictator, she said.
"President Zelenskyy cares about Ukrainians,” Edelman said.
Edelman is from Bucha, Ukraine and has family in the country who are doing as much as possible to help stop the war, she said.
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“We want to be free from Russia, we want Russian troops out of Ukraine,” Edelman said. “It would be the best decision for the whole world.”
Since the meeting between the two presidents, Zelenskyy has called it “regrettable” and said he’s ready to work under Trump’s leadership toward peace in Ukraine, according to The Associated Press.
“He worked very closely with European allies to try and set a different tone and to ensure that if the United States didn’t have the same support it did under the Biden administration, that the Europeans would do everything they could to step in,” Peceny said. “He also expressed willingness to have serious negotiations for a ceasefire.”
On March 3, Trump announced a pause on U.S. aid to Ukraine, including intelligence sharing, according to AP.
“The United States provided more military support than the Europeans combined,” Peceny said. “It will be hard for the Ukrainians to sustain their war efforts without that level of support. Ukraine will be more vulnerable to attacks by Russia by missiles, drones and planes.”
Edelman and UANM are thankful for New Mexico and New Mexicans, Edelman said.
“I just want to say thank you to New Mexico and New Mexicans, they help us a lot,” Edelman said. “It is very important for us to know that we are not alone in this war, there are great people here.”
Nate Bernard contributed reporting to this article.
Rodney Prunty is the sports editor for the Daily Lobo. He can be contacted at sports@dailylobo.com or on X @rprunty05
