Trump to Meet Zelenskyy After Harris Promises Strong Support for Ukraine

Former U.S. President Donald Trump has announced he will meet Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in New York, despite recently criticizing him and doubting Ukraine’s chances of winning the war against Russia.

Trump, who is running as the Republican candidate for the November 5 U.S. presidential election, said the meeting would take place on Friday at Trump Tower. This comes just after U.S. President Joe Biden announced over $8 billion in new military aid for Ukraine. Vice President Kamala Harris, Trump’s Democratic rival, also met with Zelenskyy this week and promised continued strong support for Ukraine.

Donald has questioned the level of U.S. support for Ukraine, and at a campaign rally earlier this week, he suggested Ukraine should have made a deal with Russia when the war began in February 2022. He also repeated his claim that he could broker a peace deal to end the conflict.

“President Zelenskyy has asked to meet with me, and we will be meeting tomorrow morning at Trump Tower,” Trump told reporters in New York. When asked if Ukraine should give up territory to make peace with Russia, Trump didn’t rule out the possibility, saying, “We’ll see what happens.”

Earlier on Thursday, Harris spoke alongside Zelenskyy and, in a veiled criticism of Donald, said that those who suggest Ukraine give up land for peace are pushing for “surrender.”

This will be Trump’s first in-person meeting with Zelenskyy since he left office in 2021, though they spoke on the phone in July. Earlier this week, it appeared Trump might refuse to meet Zelenskyy, especially after the Ukrainian president visited a weapons factory in Pennsylvania with Democratic Governor Josh Shapiro, which reportedly upset Trump.

Donald has been critical of Zelenskyy during his campaign, claiming Zelenskyy wants Harris to win the election. He has also called Ukraine “dead” and “demolished.” Tensions between the two leaders increased when Zelenskyy, in an interview with The New Yorker, said he didn’t believe Trump knows how to stop the war.

When asked about those comments, Trump replied, “I do believe I disagree with him. He doesn’t know me.”