The US president and the Ukrainian will be found for the first time from the funeral of Pope Francis. The expectation for the meeting is high, due to the tensions that both leaders are going through.
He President of the United States, Donald Trumpand the Ukrainian president, Volodimir Zelenskythey will keep a bilateral encounter this Wednesday at Hagueonce the summit of the Organization of the North Atlantic Treaty (NATO). This was confirmed by the Interim Prime Minister of Netherlands, Dick Schoofbefore the media consultation: “They will see today, they will have a meeting later”
The dialogue between both heads of state is planned after the plenary session of the summit, which It will last approximately two and a half hours. It will be the first time that Trump and Zelensky will hold a face to face from Aprilwhen they coincided in the Pope Francis’s funeral In Italy, on which their delegations described the exchange as “positive”
The tensions between Donald Trump and Volodimir Zelensky
The relationship between the two leaders traveled a tense period during the first half of the year. On your last visit to WashingtonZelensky received cold gestures from the Republican president, who even publicly denied to receive it in the White House weeks ago, which generated a cooling in diplomatic ties.
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At this summit, the Ukrainian President opted for a more reserved profile than in previous meetings. His role was also overshadowed by his absence in one of the Key Meetings of NATOwhere leaders discussed the possibility of Raise defense spending up to 2035. This decision was interpreted as a reflection of the delicate moment that crosses Ukrainian diplomacy against its allies.
Despite the tensions, both leaders agreed last night in a Official dinner at Amsterdamoffered by Reyes Guillermo Alejandro and Maximum of the Netherlands. However, details were not transcended on possible exchanges between them, since they were located in different tables During the event.
Zelensky had already tried to make a meeting with Trump during the G7 Summit in Canadaheld in the middle of the month. However, the then encounter did not materialize because Trump left the event before his arrivalarguing that he should address the critical situation that was developed at that time in Middle East.
If today’s face is completed, it will be an opportunity to resume direct contact between both parties and review the level of political and military cooperation between Washington and kyiv in the context of the war against Russia.
NATO defense to Ukraine
In the prelude to this summit, the new general secretary of the NATO, Mark Ruttehe reiterated that Ukraine is still a strategic priority For the Military Alliance. On Monday, Rutte declared before the media: “You will see an important language about Ukraine, including the connection of defense expenditure until 2035 with Ukraine, and the need for Ukraine to continue in the fight“He also said:”This is a clear commitment by the allies”
However, the eventual Absence of Zelensky at the closing dinner of NATO leaders He made a difference again with respect to his prominence in previous summits. The situation reflects a decrease in Ukrainian diplomatic weightdespite the multiple expressions of support of Western partners in the context of the conflict with Russia.
Source: Ambito
