Starmer in crisis talks with Zelenskyy and Trump following heated White House exchange
Sir Keir Starmer has held crisis talks over the phone with both Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Donald Trump following their heated exchange in the White House.
Mr Zelenskyy travelled to Washington DC as he attempted to secure a ceasefire agreement with Russia and a possible mineral deal with the US.
But his visit ended prematurely – with the signing of an agreement and a joint press conference with Mr Trump cancelled following their clash in the Oval Office.
Ukraine latest: Russian official responds to White House meeting
After the extraordinary meeting, both Mr Trump and Mr Zelenskyy spoke to the media and gave their reactions.
Meanwhile, European leaders, including France’s Emmanuel Macron and Poland’s Donald Tusk shared their support for Ukraine.
And in a statement, a Downing Street spokesperson said Sir Keir had spoken to both Mr Trump and Mr Zelenskyy.
The spokesperson said: “He [Sir Keir] retains unwavering support for Ukraine, and is doing all he can to find a path forward to a lasting peace based on sovereignty and security for Ukraine.”
The spokesperson added that the prime minister was “looking forward” to welcoming Mr Zelenskyy to the UK for a summit of international leaders on Sunday.
Volodymyr Zelenskyy leaves the White House after his row with Donald Trump. Pic: AP
‘Disrespectful’
As Mr Trump and Mr Zelenskyy met, with US vice president JD Vance joining them, tensions rose and a shouting match unfolded – all while cameras rolled and representatives from the media looked on.
The last 10 minutes of the almost 45-minute meeting descended into a tense back-and-forth, which began with Mr Vance telling Mr Zelenksyy: “I think it’s disrespectful for you to come to the Oval Office to try to litigate this in front of the American media.
“You should be thanking the President [Trump] for trying to bring an end to this conflict.”
👉 Follow Trump 100 on your podcast app 👈
As the Ukrainian president tried to object, Mr Trump raised his voice and told him: “You’re gambling with the lives of millions of people.
“You’re gambling with World War Three, and what you’re doing is very disrespectful to the country, this country that’s backed you far more than a lot of people say they should have.”
“You’re right now not in a very good position,” he continued. “You don’t have the cards right now with us, you start having problems right now.”
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
What happened when Trump met Zelenskyy?
‘This will be great television,’ says Trump
At one point, Mr Vance blasted Mr Zelenskyy for airing “disagreements” in front of the media, but the US president remarked: “I think it’s good for the American people to see what’s going on.”
“You’re not acting at all thankful,” he said. “This is going to be great television.”
Defending himself and his country, the Ukrainian president openly challenged Mr Trump on his softer approach to Vladimir Putin and urged him to make “no compromises with a killer”.
This fiery spectacle was hard to witness
The fiery and very public bust-up between Donald Trump and Volodymyr Zelenskyy is a disaster for Ukraine and its European allies, and a triumph for Russia.
The spectacle of the US president berating his Ukrainian counterpart and telling him he is gambling with World War Three – played out on television from the Oval Office – was hard to witness.
Zelenskyy, looking increasingly uncomfortable, decided to fight back. He likely felt he had little choice but to defend himself and his war-torn country.
But this act of defiance drew even more condemnation from Trump as well as from JD Vance, who also started attacking the Ukrainian leader.
It is hard to imagine a greater contrast from the chummy scenes between Sir Keir Starmer and Trump and the scolding language used by the American president against Zelenskyy, at times addressing him as though he were a naughty schoolboy.
Ukraine’s president, his arms crossed, tried his best to speak up, but he was clearly fighting a losing battle. The extraordinary breakdown is far more serious than just a made-for-television drama.
American support for Ukraine is critical if Kyiv is to withstand Russia’s war. The UK, France and Ukraine’s other European allies have been working overtime to try to keep Trump on their side.
The US president has vowed to end the war and has started talks with Vladimir Putin. The two presidents also plan to meet. That alone was hard for Ukraine to witness.
But the Ukrainian side has attempted to work with Washington rather than against it, including by being willing to part with profits from its minerals and other natural resources in return for locking Trump into a long-term partnership with Ukraine.
That all looks to be shattered – or at best is in serious jeopardy.
If Trump, in anger, withdraws all his military support to Ukraine, Kyiv’s ability to withstand Russia’s military will be seriously diminished.
The Europeans lack the capability to fill the void. The only person who wins in this scenario is Vladimir Putin.
Posting on his Truth Social platform shortly after the clash, Mr Trump described the meeting as “very meaningful” and said: “Much was learned that could never be understood without conversation under such fire and pressure.
“It’s amazing what comes out through emotion, and I have determined that President Zelenskyy is not ready for Peace if America is involved, because he feels our involvement gives him a big advantage in negotiations.”
More from Sky News:
How Starmer secured wins at the White House
Inside the Oval Office with Trump and Starmer
Volodymyr Zelenskyy leaving the White House early. Pic: AP
He continued: “I don’t want advantage, I want PEACE. He disrespected the United States of America in its cherished Oval Office. He can come back when he is ready for Peace.”
Zelenskyy posts on X after early exit
Mr Trump and Mr Zelenskyy had been due to have lunch with their delegations in the White House’s cabinet room after the meeting – but untouched salad plates and other items were seen being packed up as the meal was hastily called off.
👉Listen to The World with Richard Engel and Yalda Hakim on your podcast app👈
Such was the gulf following the row that Mr Trump told the Ukrainian leader to leave the White House, according to a US official, with the minerals deal now stuck in limbo.
Having left the White House early, Mr Zelenskyy said in a post on X: “Thank you America, thank you for your support, thank you for this visit.
“Thank you @POTUS, Congress, and the American people. Ukraine needs just and lasting peace, and we are working exactly for that.”
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
Blow-by-blow: Inside Zelenskyy and Trump’s clash
Zelenskyy speaks to Fox News
What was supposed to be a victory lap on Fox News turned into disaster management for Mr Zelenskyy.
In an interview, he portrayed the meeting as a moment of frank and divergent views between the two but said he did not see the need to apologise.
He added he wished that Mr Trump was “more on our side” after the US president said he was in the middle of Ukraine and Russia.
“I want, really, him to be more on our side,” Mr Zelenskyy said. “It’s not just that the war began somewhere between our countries. The war began when Russia brought this war to our country. And they’re not right.”
Mr Zelenskyy also expressed a belief that the relationship could be salvaged.
Trump jets off to Florida – but not without a last word
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
‘Without us he doesn’t win’ said the US president
After the White House row, Mr Trump later spoke to reporters as he left for a weekend at his Florida home.
“What he’s got to say is, ‘I want to make peace.’ He doesn’t have to stand there and say ‘Putin this, Putin that,’ all negative things. He’s got to say, ‘I want to make peace. I don’t want to fight a war anymore’,” Mr Trump said.
Former Russian president Dmitry Medvedev appeared to revel in the spectacle, writing on Telegram that the Ukrainian leader had received a “brutal dressing down”.
European leaders rally on social media
Meanwhile, in the fallout, European and world leaders were quick to rally and express their support for Mr Zelenskyy ahead of a summit in the UK on Sunday.
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
Allies rally behind Zelenskyy
A number of leaders including Canada’s Justin Trudeau, France’s Emmanuel Macron and Germany’s Olaf Scholz all tweeted.
After the Ukrainian leader was criticised in the White House for insufficient thanks to the US, he thanked the leaders individually on X.
Mr Zelenskyy also spoke with Mr Macron, NATO secretary general Mark Rutte and EU Council president Antonio Costa by phone.
This all comes as on Sunday, Sir Keir Starmer is hosting a meeting of European leaders and Mr Zelenskyy to discuss any potential security backstop in Ukraine.
Virginia Giuffre, who accused Prince Andrew of sexual assault, has died aged 41.
In a statement to Sky’s US partner network NBC News on Friday, her family said she took her own life in the Perth suburb of Neergabby, Australia, where she had been living for several years.
“It is with utterly broken hearts that we announce that Virginia passed away last night at her farm in Western Australia,” her family said.
“She lost her life to suicide, after being a lifelong victim of sexual abuse and sex trafficking.
“Virginia was a fierce warrior in the fight against sexual abuse and sex trafficking. She was the light that lifted so many survivors.
“In the end, the toll of abuse is so heavy that it became unbearable for Virginia to handle its weight.”
Pic: AP
Police said emergency services received reports of an unresponsive woman at a property in Neergabby on Friday night.
“Police and St John Western Australia attended and provided emergency first aid. Sadly, the 41-year-old woman was declared deceased at the scene,” a police spokeswoman said.
“The death is being investigated by Major Crime detectives; early indication is the death is not suspicious.”
Sexual assault claims
Prince Andrew has denied all claims of wrongdoing. File pic: Reuters
Ms Giuffre sued the Duke of York for sexual abuse in August 2021, saying Andrew had sex with her when she was 17 and had been trafficked by his friend, the billionaire paedophile Jeffrey Epstein.
The duke has repeatedly denied the claims, and he has not been charged with any criminal offences.
In March 2022, it was announced Ms Giuffre and Andrew had reached an out-of-court settlement – believed to include a “substantial donation to Ms Giuffre’s charity in support of victims’ rights”.
‘An incredible champion’
Sigrid McCawley, Ms Giuffre’s attorney, said in a statement that she “was much more than a client to me; she was a dear friend and an incredible champion for other victims”.
“Her courage pushed me to fight harder, and her strength was awe-inspiring,” she said. “The world has lost an amazing human being today.”
“Rest in peace, my sweet angel,” she added.
Listen to The World with Richard Engel and Yalda Hakim every Wednesday
Dini von Mueffling, Ms Giuffre’s representative, also said that “Virginia was one of the most extraordinary human beings I have ever had the honour to know”.
“Deeply loving, wise, and funny, she was a beacon to other survivors and victims,” she added. “She adored her children and many animals.
“She was always more concerned with me than with herself. I will miss her beyond words.
“It was the privilege of a lifetime to represent her.”
Ms Giuffre said at the end of March she had four days to live after a car accident, posting on social media that “I’ve gone into kidney renal failure”. She was discharged from hospital eight days later.
Raised mainly in Florida, she said she was abused by a family friend early in life, which led to her living on the streets at times as a teenager.
She said that in 2000, she met Ghislaine Maxwell, a British socialite who was convicted in 2021 on federal sex trafficking and conspiracy charges and was sentenced to 20 years in prison.
Ghislaine Maxwell and Jeffrey Epstein. Pic: US Department of Justice
Ms Giuffre said Maxwell then introduced her to Epstein and hired her as his masseuse, and said she was sex trafficked and sexually abused by him and associates around the world.
‘A survivor’
After meeting her husband in 2002, while taking massage training in Thailand at what she said was Epstein’s behest, she moved to Australia and had a family.
She founded the sex trafficking victims’ advocacy charity SOAR in 2015, and is quoted on its website as saying: “I do this for victims everywhere.
“I am no longer the young and vulnerable girl who could be bullied. I am now a survivor, and nobody can ever take that away from me.”
:: Anyone feeling emotionally distressed or suicidal can call Samaritans for help on 116 123 or email jo@samaritans.org in the UK. In the US, call the Samaritans branch in your area or 1 (800) 273-TALK.
Donald Trump has met Volodymyr Zelenskyy ahead of the Pope’s funeral, Vatican sources have told Sky News.
The US and Ukrainian presidents had a “very productive discussion”, according to a White House Official, and have also agreed to hold further talks after the service.
They are among world leaders, including Sir Keir Starmer and Emmanuel Macron, who are attending the funeral of Pope Francis.
Follow live updates: Zelenskyy among world leaders joining thousands of mourners
There was applause from some of those gathered in St Peter’s Square when the Ukrainian leader walked out.
The former British ambassador to Russia Sir Tony Brenton said the event presents diplomatic opportunities, including the “biggest possible meeting” between Mr Trump and Mr Zelenskyy.
Trump and Zelenskyy meet for first time since Oval Office row. Pic: Reuters
He told Sky News it could mark “an important step” in starting the peace process between Russia and Ukraine, and is their first face-to-face meeting after a very public row between the presidents at the White House in February.
The bilateral meeting comes after Mr Trump’s peace negotiator Steve Witkoff held talks with Vladimir Putin at the Kremlin.
They discussed “the possibility of resuming direct negotiations between Russia and Ukraine”, Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov said.
Russia and Ukraine have not held direct talks since the early weeks of the war, which began in February 2022.
Mr Trump has claimed a deal to end the war is “very close” and has urged Mr Zelenskyy to “get it done” in a post on his Truth Social platform.
He has previously warned both sides his administration would walk away from its efforts to achieve a peace if the two sides do not agree a deal soon.
Meanwhile, the Polish Armed Forces said a Russian military helicopter violated its airspace over the Baltic Sea on Friday evening, in a post on X.
This breaking news story is being updated and more details will be published shortly.
Please refresh the page for the fullest version.
You can receive breaking news alerts on a smartphone or tablet via the Sky News app. You can also follow us on WhatsApp and subscribe to our YouTube channel to keep up with the latest news.
US
Donald Trump says Russia and Ukraine are ‘very close to a deal’ – and says ‘two sides should now meet’
Donald Trump has said Russia and Ukraine are “very close to a deal” with “most of the major points agreed” – as he called for the two sides to meet.
Shortly after arriving in Rome for Pope Francis’s funeral, the US president said high-level officials should now meet to “finish [the deal] off”.
“A good day in talks and meetings with Russia and Ukraine,” Mr Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform.
“They are very close to a deal, and the two sides should now meet, at very high levels, to ‘finish it off’.
“Most of the major points are agreed to. Stop the bloodshed, NOW. We will be wherever is necessary to help facilitate the END to this cruel and senseless war!”
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
Ukraine-Russia peace talks explained
Throughout the week, the US president has criticised both Ukraine and Russia for failing to agree to a peace deal.
On Wednesday, he accused Mr Zelenskyy of harming talks on Truth Social, saying “the man with ‘no cards to play’ should now, finally, GET IT DONE”.
A day later, after nine people were killed in Kyiv after a Russian missile and drone strike, Mr Trump said: “Vladimir, STOP! 5000 soldiers a week are dying. Let’s get the Peace Deal DONE!”
The president and other officials have also threatened to withdraw from negotiations if no progress is made toward a deal.
It comes after Mr Trump’s envoy Steve Witkoff met Vladimir Putin in Moscow to discuss a US-brokered peace plan for Ukraine.
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
Putin-Witkoff meeting
The talks allowed Russia and the United States to “further bring their positions closer together” on “a number of international issues”, a Kremlin aide said.
Speaking earlier on the flight to Italy, Mr Trump said he hadn’t been fully briefed on Mr Witkoff and Mr Putin’s meeting – but added it was a “pretty good meeting”.
Read more:
US and Russia talks moving in ‘right direction’, top diplomat says
A ‘barbaric’ 24 hours in a ‘horrendous’ war
Russia and Ukraine have not held direct talks since the early weeks of the war, which began in February 2022.
Ukraine has repeatedly said it would not accept a deal conceding land or handing over sovereignty to Russia.
However, Mr Trump said in an interview with TIME magazine that “Crimea will stay with Russia,” describing the region as a place where Moscow has “had their submarines” and “the people speak largely Russian”.
“Zelenskyy understands that, and everybody understands that it’s been with them for a long time,” he added. “It’s been with them long before Trump came along.”
When asked on Friday about Mr Trump’s comments, Mr Zelenskyy did not want to comment but repeated that recognising occupied Ukrainian territory as Russian is a red line.
-
Sports3 years ago‘Storybook stuff’: Inside the night Bryce Harper sent the Phillies to the World Series
-
Sports1 year agoStory injured on diving stop, exits Red Sox game
-
Sports1 year agoGame 1 of WS least-watched in recorded history
-
Sports2 years agoMLB Rank 2023: Ranking baseball’s top 100 players
-
Sports4 years ago
Team Europe easily wins 4th straight Laver Cup
-
Environment2 years agoJapan and South Korea have a lot at stake in a free and open South China Sea
-
Environment2 years agoGame-changing Lectric XPedition launched as affordable electric cargo bike
-
Business3 years agoBank of England’s extraordinary response to government policy is almost unthinkable | Ed Conway