Zelensky should return to negotiations with Trump, Polish president says
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky should return to the negotiation table after a televised spat with his US counterpart, Donald Trump, Polish President Andrzej Duda has said.
Zelensky clashed with Trump and his vice president, JD Vance, at the White House on Friday, sending shockwaves across the Western world and raising questions about the viability of Washington's further military support for Kyiv. The meeting ended abruptly without signing the much-expected rare earth minerals deal that Trump has insisted on as a payback for US support.
The Polish president made the statement on Saturday, before his flight to the US, where he will meet with the Polish diaspora and participate in the UN General Assembly session.
"Today, I would say that a return to the negotiation table is needed... Volodymyr Zelensky should return to this table, should sit peacefully at this table and, remaining calm, negotiate a solution that would make Ukraine safe, and we, as Ukraine allies who have supported Ukraine from the very beginning, we'll be supporting him," Duda said.
"Considering to-date experience, I can't see any other force in the world besides the United States that could stop the Russian aggression, taking into account the capabilities to support Ukraine that it has, but primarily the US military and economic potential," Duda continued.
Asked whether he could act as a mediator between Trump and Zelensky, Duda said: "I can't confirm it, and I can't deny it. It's an open question, of course." (PAP)
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