Ukraine-Russia war latest: Trump unveils Zelensky letter praising his leadership in address to Congress
Donald Trump says he has received a letter from Volodymyr Zelensky praising his “strong leadership”, after the two publicly clashed in the Oval Office.
Mr Trump told Congress that he “appreciated” Mr Zelensky sending the letter, which expressed willingness to come to the negotiating table and end the war as soon as possible.
There was no direct mention of a rare earth minerals deal in Mr Trump’s speech, although he quoted Mr Zelensky’s letter as saying Ukraine was ready to sign.
Mr Trump again refused to blame Russia for starting the war in his remarks, bemoaning the loss of “young Russian lives” before “young Ukrainian lives”.
On the frontline, Ukrainian soldiers have said they are feeling let down by the US after Mr Trump paused military aid to the country.
“I feel betrayed, but this feeling is not really deep for some reason. I was expecting something like that from Trump’s side,” said a Ukrainian soldier fighting in Russia’s Kursk region.
