President Donald Trump stepped up his criticism of Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Monday after a blow-up in the Oval Office last week, suggesting Ukraine's leader "won't be around very long" without a ceasefire deal with Russia.
Trump heavily criticized Zelenskyy for saying the war could go on for a long time and said Ukraine's president should be "more appreciative" of the billions of dollars of military aid given by the U.S. to Kyiv for its fight against Russia.
But Trump said that a minerals deal that fell through last week following their heated exchange at the Oval Office was not dead, and he appeared to downplay reports that he could halt military aid to Kyiv.
"It should not be that hard a deal to make," Trump said regarding a ceasefire. "It could be made very fast. Now, maybe somebody doesn't want to make a deal, and if somebody doesn't want to make a deal, I think that person won't be around very long.
"That person will not be listened to very long because I believe that Russia wants to make a deal. I believe certainly the people of Ukraine want to make a deal."
Earlier Monday, Trump slammed Zelenskyy after he told European leaders in London that an end to Moscow's invasion was far off.
"This is the worst statement that could have been made by Zelenskyy, and America will not put up with it for much longer," Trump wrote in a post on Truth Social. This guy doesn't want there to be Peace as long as he has America's backing."
Trump also accused European leaders of weakness, saying they had "stated flatly that they cannot do the job without the U.S."
"Probably not a great statement to have been made in terms of a show of strength against Russia. What are they thinking," Trump wrote.
Trump's broadsides came after a meeting with Zelenskyy at the White House in front of the media Friday descended into an on-camera argument.
Trump and Vice President J.D. Vance accused Zelenskyy of being disrespectful and ungrateful for U.S. military assistance, as Zelenskyy pushed his demand for American security guarantees as part of a truce.
Zelenskyy was then told to leave the White House, with the crucial deal giving the U.S. preferential access to Ukraine's mineral resources left unsigned.
Trump was meeting his top aides later Monday to discuss next steps on Ukraine, but he played down reports that he was considering cutting military aid if Zelenskyy doesn't agree to a truce.
"I haven't even talked about that right now," he said. "I mean, right now, we'll see what happens. A lot of things are happening right now, literally as we speak."