Belgium backs Ukraine after Trump clashes with Zelensky
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Belgian prime minister Bart De Wever has reiterated that Belgium remains firmly behind Ukraine and its people, following Friday's contentious meeting between US president Donald Trump and Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky. Meanwhile, US secretary of state Marco Rubio has demanded an apology from the Ukrainian leader.
Zelensky was in Washington to finalise a minerals agreement, but the deal was not signed. He left the White House early and a planned press conference was cancelled after Trump and vice president JD Vance subjected him to criticism and humiliation. Trump accused Zelensky of being ungrateful and claimed that he was “gambling with World War Three”.
“We stand behind Ukraine and the Ukrainian people in their historic fight to defend themselves against an unprovoked Russian aggression. Their fight is our fight. United we are strong,” De Wever said.
His remarks align with those of numerous other European leaders who expressed support for Zelensky after Trump said the Ukrainian president was not ready for peace with US involvement.
“Together, we must rise to this challenge,” Belgian Foreign minister Maxime Prévot wrote on X. “We will always stand by your side. By the side of the country which has been fighting so hard for its freedom for three years. A country whose sovereignty and territorial integrity have been violated.”
Prévot also said Belgium and the European Union would remain on the right side of history. “For a just, comprehensive and lasting peace. Belgium and the EU will remain on the right side of history.”
Apology wanted
Across the Atlantic, however, the tone was markedly different. Secretary of state Marco Rubio called on Zelensky to "apologise for turning this thing into the fiasco for [Trump] that it became".
“When you start talking about that aggressively – and the president is a deal maker, he made deals his entire life – you’re not going to get people to the table,” Rubio said. “And so you start to perceive that maybe Zelensky doesn’t want a peace deal. He says he does, but maybe he doesn’t.”
"The president is a deal maker, he made deals his entire life"
Following the meeting, Zelensky told Fox News that he saw no reason to apologise.
Talks between the two nations will not resume immediately, Trump confirmed, but he reiterated his call for an immediate ceasefire in Ukraine.
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