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ContinuedContinued — WH is crediting/blaming Vance:
“… Vance had sat through two bilateral Oval Office press gaggles earlier in the week with little interjection, speaking up only when Trump called on him to answer a reporter’s question Thursday during British Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s visit.
… But fresh in Vance’s mind was a meeting only two weeks earlier in Munich, where he, Rubio and Zelensky — before aides and cameras joined them — had a serious conversation about signing the minerals deal, according to administration officials. The day after the meeting, however, Zelensky said he couldn’t sign a deal that wasn’t connected to security guarantees.
Rubio later said in an interview that Zelensky had assured Vance and himself that he wanted “to do this deal” and only needed legislative approval to get it done, and that Zelensky’s later public comments left the Americans “upset” — a sentiment that loomed over Friday’s Oval Office talks, even as the Trump administration was preparing to make the deal happen.
Vance’s in-the-moment decision to criticize Zelensky for not being “respectful” and questioning Trump’s diplomatic strategy changed the tone of the meeting and primed Trump to also let loose on the Ukrainian president.
… Trump and Vance later spoke about the interaction, and Vance’s decision to chime in, and Trump indicated that he approved of the vice president’s comments, according to a White House official.
“They both felt exactly the same way about the circumstances, that Zelensky was being inappropriate,” the official said, and that “it was not right for him to be litigating” the U.S. strategy with Russia “in front of the press.” …”
“…
We “pretty much unanimously advised the president that after that insult in the Oval Office, we just do not see how that could move forward, that any further engagement would only go backward from this moment on,” Waltz told “Fox News Saturday.”
It fell to him and Rubio — both of them past defenders of Ukraine and Zelensky — to bring the news to the Ukrainians.
Waltz said that Ukrainian Ambassador Oksana Markarova was “practically in tears” as the delegation sat waiting, but that Zelensky was still argumentative.
Waltz said that he told Zelensky, “Look, Mr. President, time is not on your side here. Time is not on your side on the battlefield. Time is not on your side in terms of the world situation and most importantly, U.S. aid and the taxpayers, tolerance is not unlimited.”
The national security adviser said that Zelensky “has not gotten the memo that this is a new sheriff in town.”
… Zelensky traveled to London on Saturday to meet Prime Minister Keir Starmer, who convened a summit Sunday with other European leaders who have rallied behind the Ukrainian leader.
On Saturday, Rutte, the NATO secretary general, who is expected to attend the summit, described the meeting as “unfortunate,” but said he made clear to Zelensky that it was important to “find a way to restore his relationship” with Trump and others in the administration. …”