European Union officials pledged continued support and funding after Donald Trump called Volodymyr Zelenskyy harder to deal with than Vladimir Putin.
European Union leaders gathered in Brussels on Friday to reinforce their support for Ukraine, pushing back against a growing diplomatic divide between Washington and Kyiv. Speaking on the second and final day of an EU summit, European Council President Antonio Costa and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said Europe must step up weapons shipments and keep sanctions on Russia firmly in place, Al Jazeera reported.
The European show of unity arrived hours after US President Donald Trump renewed personal attacks on Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy during an interview broadcast Thursday evening on Newsmax, BBC News reported. Trump said the Ukrainian leader is “more difficult to deal with than [Russian President Vladimir] Putin” and described Ukraine’s renewed drone attacks on Russian oil refineries as a disgrace.
The dispute follows earlier friction between Washington and Kyiv over energy policy. Trump called for a new Ukrainian leader after the two governments clashed over refinery strikes and an American arrangement to import Russian diesel.
Zelenskyy attended the summit in Brussels in person, calling European officials “real leaders” as he arrived alongside Costa and von der Leyen. The Ukrainian leader did not comment directly on Trump’s latest remarks, but he asked European governments to supply tens of billions of euros to cover Kyiv’s military and civil needs over the coming year.
The energy dispute between Washington and Kyiv
Tension between the White House and Kyiv sharpened over refinery strikes and fuel shipments. Last weekend, Trump announced that Ukraine and Russia had reached an energy ceasefire to stop attacking power and fuel facilities. Zelenskyy had paused refinery strikes for three days following Trump’s request, but Ukraine resumed strikes on Russian oil refineries on Thursday after arguing that Moscow had never halted its own attacks.
Trump criticized the renewed strikes for driving global energy costs upward. He is frustrated by the strikes because the United States agreed to import 300,000 tonnes of Russian diesel to lower fuel prices at home, while suspending sanctions on Russian petroleum products.
Zelenskyy pushed back against the American arrangement on the summit sidelines. He said the diesel imports would never make up for disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz, but would instead send cash directly to Moscow to fund the war. Zelenskyy also dismissed prospects for quick diplomacy, arguing that Putin has no genuine interest in peace talks and is merely playing with words.
Zelenskyy seeks 70 billion euros for winter
Ukraine is preparing for heavy winter assaults on its energy grid four and a half years after Russia launched its invasion. Zelenskyy told EU leaders that the war will cost 155 billion euros ($174 billion) next year, and he asked European partners to provide at least 70 billion euros ($79 billion) of that total for weapons, air defence and broader resilience.
Von der Leyen assured Zelenskyy that the bloc will stand by Kyiv through the winter as Russia attempts to ruin power and water networks. She added that the EU will not drop sanctions until Russia ends the war. Estonian Prime Minister Kristen Michal warned that the coming winter will be brutal and said the bloc will likely need to approve a new loan to cover Kyiv’s budget deficit.
Not all EU leaders backed immediate financial promises. Austrian Chancellor Christian Stocker urged caution, saying leaders must review the numbers and understand where the budget gap comes from before committing additional funds. European officials have also privately asked Zelenskyy to soften his public criticisms of Trump so Europe does not end up caught between Kyiv and Washington.
Deadly attacks and continuing diplomatic talks
The summit took place as Russian bombardment struck northern and eastern Ukraine. Overnight strikes killed three people and injured at least 14 in Kharkiv, according to regional governor Oleg Synegubov, while leaving hundreds of thousands of residents across the country without electricity.
Zelenskyy has conducted a series of diplomatic meetings across Europe this week. Before the summit on Friday, he met NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, British Prime Minister Andy Burnham at 10 Downing Street in London, and the leaders of France, Poland, Belgium and Denmark. In Brussels on Friday, his schedule included meetings with Costa, von der Leyen, and the prime ministers of Finland, Sweden and Hungary.
