Harshly criticized by Mr. Trump, Mr. Zelensky refused to apologize.

According to RIA Novosti, a tense exchange took place between US President Donald Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on February 28 (Washington time). According to US media, the head of the Kiev government was kicked out of the White House, despite the pleas of the Ukrainian delegation. The deal on rare earth metals failed.

President Donald Trump said Ukraine must end its conflict with Russia or face serious consequences.

"Either end the war or leave it as it is and see what happens. Let them continue fighting," he said.

Although the US side demands that the conflict must end immediately, and that a ceasefire can be achieved “right now”, the head of the Kiev government does not want this.

"We don't want a ten-year war. We want peace... And he wants to keep fighting, fighting, fighting. We want to stop the death. I don't want to fight anymore. The Ukrainian people are being worn out. Mr. Zelensky has overestimated his position. He has no trump cards, understand that," President Trump told reporters at the White House, commenting on the results of the meeting with Mr. Zelensky.

The US leader stressed that, unlike Zelensky, Russian President Vladimir Putin wants peace.

According to Mr. Trump, the dialogue with Zelensky could be resumed if he stopped criticizing Russian President Vladimir Putin and made clear his desire for a peaceful solution.

On the Ukrainian side, President Zelensky still does not understand what he did wrong in the meeting with Trump and said that he will not apologize to the US leader.

In response, President Trump said: "Send a few words of thanks to the United States and the president who is trying to save your country. Without US military aid, the conflict in Ukraine could have ended within two weeks, maybe even less."

According to President Trump, the US does not want to send many weapons to this post-Soviet republic, and Washington is looking to end the conflict to do other things. The US leader also expressed regret for Washington's involvement in the conflict in Ukraine and admitted that he felt responsible for finding a way to resolve this problem.

Commenting on Mr. Zelensky's unpreparedness for peace, President Trump said: "The meeting at the White House was very meaningful. We learned a lot that we could not have learned without such a tense and 'under fire' conversation. And I determined that Mr. Zelensky is not ready for peace, if the United States is involved, because he thinks that our participation will give him a big advantage in the negotiations."