Ukrainians rally around Zelensky as defender of Ukraine’s interests after White House blowout

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Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy speaks during an interview with Bret Baier during a taping of FOX News Channel's Special Report with Bret Baier in Washington on Feb. 28, 2025. (AP Photo)
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Updated 01 March 2025
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Ukrainians rally around Zelensky as defender of Ukraine’s interests after White House blowout

  • Many Ukrainians on Friday seemed unfazed by the blowout between Zelensky and Tru
  • Backers praised his commitment to acting in Ukraine’s national interest, even if it meant coming into conflict with the US president

KYIV, Ukraine: Soon after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky left the White House on Friday after an astonishing Oval Office blowout with President Donald Trump, Ukrainians rallied around Zelensky as a defender of his country’s interests.
The shouting match that unfolded in the final minutes of the highly anticipated meeting between the two leaders seemed to dash, at least for now, Ukrainian hopes that the United States could be locked in as a reliable partner in helping fend off, and conclude, Russia’s three-year onslaught.
The exchange, which saw a frustrated Zelensky lectured by Trump and Vice President JD Vance over what they saw as his lack of gratitude for previous US support, delighted officials in Moscow, who saw it as a final breakdown in relations between Washington and the Ukrainian leader.
Many Ukrainians unfazed by the row
But many Ukrainians on Friday seemed unfazed by the blowout between Zelensky and Trump, expressing a sense that the Ukrainian leader had stood up for their country’s dignity and interests by firmly maintaining his stance in the face of chiding from some of the world’s most powerful men.
Nataliia Serhiienko, 67, a retiree in Kyiv, said she thinks Ukrainians approve of their president’s performance in Washington, “because Zelensky fought like a lion.”
“They had a heated meeting, a very heated conversation,” she said. But Zelensky “was defending Ukraine’s interests.”
The meeting at the White House was meant to produce a bilateral agreement that would establish a joint investment fund for reconstructing Ukraine, a deal that was seen as a potential step toward bringing an end to the war and tying the two countries’ economies together for years to come.
But as Zelensky and his team departed the White House at Trump’s request, the deal went unsigned, and Ukraine’s hopes for securing US security backing seemed farther away than ever.
Yet as the Ukrainian leader was set to return to Kyiv empty handed, his support at home seemed undiminished.

Regional Ukrainian leader says president ‘held strong’
As two drones struck Ukraine’s second-largest city Kharkiv on Friday night, the head of the region which sits on the border with Russia, Oleh Syniehubov, praised Zelensky. He said the president held strong to his insistence that no peace deal could be made without assurances for Ukraine’s security against future Russian aggression.
“Our leader, despite the pressure, stands firm in defending the interests of Ukraine and Ukrainians. … We need only a just peace with security guarantees,” Syniehubov said.
Kyiv resident Artem Vasyliev, 37, said he had seen “complete disrespect” from the United States in the Oval Office exchange, despite the fact that Ukraine “was the first country that stood up to Russia.”
“We are striving for democracy, and we are met with total disrespect, toward our warriors, our soldiers, and the people of our country,” said Vasyliev, a native of Russian-occupied Luhansk in eastern Ukraine.
Vasyliev criticized the US president for what he said was a failure to recognize the human cost of Russia’s invasion, saying Trump “doesn’t understand that people are dying, that cities are being destroyed, people are suffering, mothers, children, soldiers.”
“He cannot understand this, he is just a businessman. For him, money is sacred,” he said.
Broad praise for Zelensky on social media
Ukrainian social media was awash in praise for Zelensky late Friday, with officials on the national, regional and local level chiming in to voice their support for their leader.
The outpouring resembled a recent surge in Ukrainian unity after Trump denigrated Zelensky by making false claims that Ukraine was led by a “dictator” who started the war with Russia — comments that led some of the Ukrainian president’s harshest critics to rally around him.
Oleksandr Prokudin, head of Ukraine’s southern Kherson region, which was mostly occupied by Russia early in the war but later partially retaken by Ukrainian forces, said three years of war had hardened his countrymen to the ups and downs of the fight to survive.
“We know what pressure is, on the front lines, in politics, in daily struggle,” Prokudin said. “It has made us stronger. It has made the president stronger. Determination is the force that drives us forward. And I am confident that we will endure this time as well.”
Trump’s administration cast the heated exchange with Zelensky as part of its “America First” policy and slammed the Ukrainian leader for a perceived lack of gratitude for US assistance.
But Zelensky’s backers in Ukraine praised his commitment to acting in Ukraine’s national interest — even if it meant coming into conflict with the president of the United States.
“Unwavering commitment to Ukraine’s interests and devotion to his country. This is what we saw today in the United States. Support for the President of Ukraine,” Vice Prime Minister Oleksii Kuleba wrote on Telegram Friday.
Not all of Ukraine’s political figures, however, were as full-throated in their praise for how the Oval Office meeting concluded. Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko said that he hoped “that Ukraine does not lose the support of the United States, which is extremely important to us.”
“Today is not the time for emotions, from either side. We need to find common ground,” Klitschko wrote in a post on Telegram.
 


Spain hosts European, Arab nations to pressure Israel on Gaza

Updated 2 sec ago
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Spain hosts European, Arab nations to pressure Israel on Gaza

MADRID: The international community should look to sanction Israel to stop the war in Gaza, Spain’s foreign minister said, ahead of a Madrid meeting of European and Arab nations on Sunday to urge a halt to its offensive.
Countries Israel had long counted on as allies have been adding their voices to growing international pressure after it expanded military operations against Gaza’s Hamas rulers, whose 2023 attack on Israel sparked the devastating war.
A two-month aid blockade has worsened shortages of food, water, fuel and medicine in the Palestinian territory, sparking fears of famine.
Aid organizations say the trickle of supplies Israel allowed to enter in recent days falls far short of needs.
Madrid will host 20 countries as well as international organizations on Sunday with the aim of “stopping this war, which no longer has any goal,” Spanish Foreign Minister Jose Manuel Albares told France Info radio.
Humanitarian aid must enter Gaza “massively, unimpeded, neutrally, so that it is not Israel who decides who can eat and who cannot,” he said.
A previous such gathering in Madrid last year brought together countries including Egypt, Jordan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Turkiye as well as European nations such as Ireland and Norway that have recognized a Palestinian state.
Sunday’s meeting, which also includes representatives from the Arab League and the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, will promote a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
After the European Union decided this week to review its cooperation deal with Israel, Albares said “we must consider sanctions, we must do everything, consider everything to stop this war.”
Hamas’s October 7, 2023 attack on Israel resulted in the deaths of 1,218 people, mainly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on official figures.
Palestinian militants also took 251 hostages, 57 of whom remain in Gaza including 34 the Israeli military says are dead.
Israel’s retaliatory offensive has killed almost 54,000 people, mostly civilians, according to Hamas-run Gaza’s health ministry.

Chinese PM in Indonesia to expand trade ties as US rivalry grows

Indonesia’s President Prabowo Subianto (L) and Chinese Premier Li Qiang inspect a guard of honor during a welcoming ceremony.
Updated 6 min 59 sec ago
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Chinese PM in Indonesia to expand trade ties as US rivalry grows

  • China wants to increase cooperation with Indonesia under Belt and Road Initiative, Li says
  • From Jakarta, he will head to Malaysia for the ASEAN-GCC-China Economic Summit

JAKARTA: Indonesia and China signed a series of agreements enhancing trade ties on Sunday, following Chinese Premier Li Qiang’s meetings with Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto in Jakarta.

Li arrived in the Indonesian capital on Saturday for a three-day visit.

He was received by Prabowo with a guard of honor at the Presidential Palace on Sunday morning, where they witnessed the signing of 12 memoranda, including on investment, banking, cooperation between sovereign wealth funds, industry, supply chains, tourism, economy, and health.

“I reaffirm our commitment to strengthen this partnership with the People’s Republic of China … We view this relationship as bringing benefits not only to our two countries but also to the entire Asian region and possibly even the world,” Prabowo said during the meeting, as quoted by his office.

The visit comes against the backdrop of the US global trade war and intensifying geopolitical rivalry between Washington and Beijing, which has lately seen China’s top leaders increase their regional outreach and engagement with Southeast Asian countries.

Chinese state news agency Xinhua quoted Li as saying during talks with Prabowo that China is “willing to work with Indonesia to enhance alignment of development strategies and deepen high-quality Belt and Road cooperation.”

The Belt and Road Initiative is a multibillion-dollar network of massive road, energy, port and industrial projects launched by Beijing in 2013 to connect China to the rest of Asia, Europe, and Africa.

Both China and Indonesia are members of the G20 forum of the world’s largest economies and in January this year, Indonesia joined the China-led BRICS grouping, which is also spearheaded by Brazil, Russia, India, and South Africa.

Indonesia is the first Southeast Asian country to enter the bloc, which is the most powerful geopolitical forum outside of the Western world.

During Li’s visit, the Indonesian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (Kadin) and the China Chamber of Commerce in Indonesia signed an agreement to increase business collaboration, bilateral trade and investment flows.

The Chinese premier’s delegation featured dozens of business leaders who met Indonesian entrepreneurs at the Indonesia-China Business Reception on Saturday, which was also attended by Prabowo and the Chinese premier.

“Indonesia-China trade reaches $130 billion a year, making China Indonesia’s largest trading partner. This is an opportunity to increase investment and create jobs,” Kadin chairman Anindya Novyan Bakrie said in a statement.

“When relations are good, licenses are certainly easier, and funding will be more accessible. For sure, we want more investment to boost the economy and create jobs.”

On Monday, Li will head to Malaysia for the ASEAN-GCC-China Economic Summit, attended by leaders from Southeast Asian countries and the Gulf Cooperation Council.


Malaysia calls for Myanmar truce extension, pushes for peace deal

Updated 17 min 45 sec ago
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Malaysia calls for Myanmar truce extension, pushes for peace deal

  • Malaysian government calls for the extension of post earthquake ceasefire in Myanmar
  • More than 6,600 killed and over a million displaced according to the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners

KUALA LAMPUR: Malaysia called Sunday for the extension and expansion of a post-earthquake ceasefire in Myanmar, as it ramped up calls for the long-awaited implementation of a five-point peace plan.
The ruling military junta initially declared a truce in the many-sided civil war after a huge quake in late March killed nearly 3,800 and left tens of thousands homeless.
That agreement, which has been extended before, is due to expire at the end of May — though conflict monitors say fighting and junta airstrikes have continued throughout.
At a meeting of regional foreign ministers on Sunday, Malaysia’s Mohamad Hasan “proposed the extension and expansion of ceasefires beyond the currently affected zones,” a statement said.
“We call on the stakeholders in Myanmar to cease hostilities, and to extend and expand the ceasefire, to facilitate the long and difficult path toward recovery, and ease the suffering of the people of Myanmar,” Mohamad said in his opening remarks.
The United Nations and independent conflict monitors say the junta has continued its campaign of aerial bombardment despite the ceasefire.
Numerous anti-coup and ethnic armed groups have made their own pledges to pause hostilities.
However some residents in eastern Myanmar said they have been displaced as anti-coup forces besieged junta-held towns.
More than 6,600 people have been killed since the coup, according to the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners, and millions displaced.


Malaysia currently holds the rotating chairmanship of the 10-country Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), with leaders due to meet at a summit in Kuala Lumpur on Monday.
The bloc has led so far fruitless diplomatic efforts to end Myanmar’s conflict since the junta staged a coup deposing civilian leader Aung San Suu Kyi in February 2021.
ASEAN has struggled to implement the five-point peace plan agreed by all bloc leaders in April 2021.
As a result junta officials have been barred from ASEAN summits over lack of progress on the deal.
“One thing for sure that we agreed is that Myanmar’s government... must comply with the five points consensus which they themselves agreed on as one of the signatories,” Mohamad said later on Sunday.
He stressed two of the most important points were an immediate halt to hostilities, and the appointment of a special envoy to visit Myanmar’s capital Naypyidaw.
Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim met Myanmar’s junta leader Min Aung Hlaing in Bangkok in April and urged him to respect the truce.
That followed an earlier visit by Mohamad and Thai counterpart Maris Sangiampongsa to Naypyidaw as part of ASEAN’s efforts to assess humanitarian needs and aid delivery to those affected by the earthquake.
Mohamad told reporters Sunday he would visit Naypyidaw in an ASEAN capacity in June.
“We have to explore (the issue) with patience because the warring sections have been against each other for decades,” Mohamad said.
Myanmar’s junta has announced plans to hold an election around the end of the year.
But the opposition has urged the public and political parties to boycott any poll organized by the military government.
Mohamad said Sunday there was “no point” in having an election if there was only partial participation by the people.


At least 14 killed in Pakistan storms after heatwave

Updated 46 min 37 sec ago
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At least 14 killed in Pakistan storms after heatwave

  • 14 people were killed and over a hundred injured as a result of windstorms that swept across central and northern Pakistan
  • Temperatures reached near record levels in April with schools announcing early summer vacations because of the heat

LAHORE: “Destructive” windstorms that raged across central and northern Pakistan after an intense heatwave have killed at least 14 people and injured over 100 more, officials said Sunday.
Fierce winds, thunder and lightning swept across eastern Punjab and northwestern Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa provinces as well as the capital Islamabad on Saturday afternoon and evening, uprooting trees and downing electric poles.
While the majority of the deaths were caused by collapsing walls and roofs, at least two people died after being hit by solar panels dislodged by the whipping gusts.
One man was killed and three others were injured by lightning strikes.
Mazhar Hussain, a spokesperson for the Punjab provincial disaster management authority, told AFP that such windstorms develop because of excessive heat, which reached above 45 degrees Celsius (113 degrees Fahrenheit) in recent days.
“There were three to four days in the recent heatwave where temperatures went up quite a lot,” he said, announcing 14 deaths in Punjab and 100 injured.
“This windstorm was particularly destructive. The wind speed was very high. There was so much dust in it that visibility was greatly reduced.”
The Pakistan Meteorological Department predicted more storms on Sunday.
Social media was replete on Saturday evening with videos of the damage the windstorms had unleashed.
A clip filmed inside a plane about to land in Punjab’s city of Lahore showed passengers screaming in terror as the aircraft was tossed about by turbulence.
The plane was later diverted to Karachi.
Other videos show cars crushed by falling trees and roads blocked by debris.
Pakistan, one of the countries most vulnerable to the effects of climate change, is grappling with increasingly frequent extreme weather events.
Islamabad experienced several usually rare hail storms throughout April and May that damaged vehicles, smashing window panes and shattering solar panels.
Soaring temperatures in April and May are becoming more common in Pakistan, which usually sees summer begin in early June.
Temperatures reached near-record levels in April, as high as 46.5C (115.7F) in parts of Punjab.
Schools in Punjab and Balochistan have announced early summer vacations because of the heat.


Man killed by automatic gunfire in French city of Dijon

Updated 25 May 2025
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Man killed by automatic gunfire in French city of Dijon

  • The police criminal investigation unit determined the shooter
  • The southern Chenove district where the killing occurred was known for drug trafficking

LYON: A 29-year-old man was fatally shot overnight in the eastern French city of Dijon, the local prosecutor said on Sunday, adding that a gangland killing was suspected.
The southern Chenove district where the killing occurred was known for drug trafficking, the prosecutor, Olivier Caracotch, said in a statement.
“A dozen shell casings used by an automatic weapon” were found in the street where the killing took place, he said.
Nearby vehicles and a third-floor apartment were hit by some of the shots, but there were no other casualties, he said.
The police criminal investigation unit determined the shooter had approached a group that included the victim around midnight, opened fire, then escaped by car, Caracotch said.
The man killed lived in the city and had no police record for drug-related crimes, he said, adding that the investigation opened was for organized gang murder and criminal association.