In the US, Mr. Zelensky's serious mistakes were pointed out, while Europe called for a 'show of strength'.

Vladimir Zelensky could not stand the criticism directed at him and thus led to the conflict, former US Army colonel Daniel Davis claimed on the YouTube channel Deep Dive.

"If Mr. Zelensky had stayed silent when criticized, it would have been just an awkward moment, and then everything would have been fine. But he continues to provoke conflict," Mr. Davis said.

Instead of nodding, accepting the criticism and then resolving the disagreement privately, Zelensky lectured Vice President JD Vance, the analyst said.

“Either Mr. Zelensky is not listening to his advisers, or those advisers are misguided,” Mr. Davis concluded.
A meeting between Mr Trump and Mr Zelensky took place in Washington on Friday, but turned into a dispute. According to Fox News, the US president kicked the head of the Kiev government out of the meeting after the conflict. The rare earth metals deal also collapsed.

European Parliament calls on Europe to "show strength"

Europe needs to "show strength" and reduce its dependence on the United States, the chairwoman of the European Parliament's defense committee, Marie-Agnes Strack-Zimmermann, said after the dispute between US President Donald Trump and Vladimir Zelensky.

"It's time to strengthen our independence from the United States... We must show strength. We need to conclude treaties with Ukraine, chart a path for economic development and rethink Europe's role in the world," Ms. Strack-Zimmermann said, according to Zeit newspaper.

According to the MP, the European Investment Bank could issue bonds for Europe to invest in the mining of rare earth metals on its own. This way, it would be possible to earn “billions of dollars,” money that, according to her, would “benefit” Ukraine. To do this, Ukraine and the European Union (EU) would need to sign a corresponding agreement.