Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky met with Keith Kellogg, the US special envoy for the Ukraine talks, RBC-Ukraine reported. The planned joint press conference was canceled at Washington's request, Zelensky's administration said, according to "Reuters"
Keith Kellogg, who heads US diplomacy on the Ukraine issue, is tasked with mediating between Kiev and European allies. He is responsible for communication with Ukraine and the EU, while the US will use a different channel for its talks with Moscow. Kellogg, who is in Kiev, was scheduled to visit the front lines to get a first-hand look at the situation.
Ukrainian sources have told the BBC that Kellogg's figure is increasingly looking like a "sideline" in the Donald Trump administration.
He made his remarks at a time when Kiev is facing a growing crisis in relations with its once key ally, the United States, under President Donald Trump.
Yesterday, Trump said Zelensky was a "dictator without an election" who must act quickly or lose his country - unthinkable rhetoric from a US leader for most of Russia's three-year war.
Trump has been pushing for a quick deal to end the war in Ukraine and has alarmed European allies by leaving them and Ukraine out of initial talks with Russia and blaming Kiev for Russia's 2022 invasion.
In response, European leaders have pledged to increase defense spending, and some are considering creating a US-backed European peacekeeping force for Ukraine - a plan that the Kremlin says is a major cause for concern but which Zelensky has rejected. welcomes.
Trump is seeking to repair relations with Russia as well as invest in Ukraine's mineral resources, which are crucial to the energy transition, even though Ukraine rejected the initial U.S. plan because it did not include security guarantees.
The Trump administration may try to strike a simplified deal on the minerals and negotiate detailed terms later, two people familiar with the matter said.
Arriving in Kiev on Wednesday, Kellogg said he was there to listen. Zelensky initially accused Trump of repeating Russian disinformation, but later adopted a conciliatory tone.