Rubio: Zelenskyy should apologise to Trump after Oval Office clash

By Nazrin Gasimova
March 1, 2025 11:28
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Reuters

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Friday that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy should apologize to U.S. President Donald Trump after a heated Oval Office exchange.  

Speaking to CNN, Rubio, who attended the meeting, said, “You guys only saw the end. You don’t see all the things that led up to this.” He accused Zelenskyy of being "antagonistic" and turning the situation into a fiasco.  

Zelenskyy, in an interview with FOX News, did not directly address whether he owed Trump an apology but insisted he had done nothing wrong. The tense 10-minute exchange ended with Zelenskyy leaving the White House before a planned signing ceremony for a critical minerals deal.  

Rubio emphasised Trump's commitment to ending the Ukraine war through negotiations, stating, "We want to explore whether peace is possible." He argued that Zelenskyy’s resistance to diplomacy suggested he might not genuinely seek a peace deal.  

The U.S. diplomat also criticised European leaders for lacking a clear strategy, citing one unnamed foreign minister who believed prolonging the war would ultimately weaken Russia. "That’s another year of killing, another year of destruction," Rubio warned, stressing the urgency of resolving the conflict.

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