Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, during his press conference, responded to recent statements by US President Donald Trump amid ongoing negotiations between US and Russian delegations.
Zelensky dismissed claims that only 4% of Ukrainians trust him, stating that this information comes from Russia.
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While he declined to comment directly on the poll, he pointed to a recent survey by the Kyiv International Institute of Sociology, which found that 57% of Ukrainians trust him.
“If someone wants to replace me right now, it’s not going to happen,” Zelensky said.
He reiterated that the 4% figure originates from Russia and has been discussed between US and Russian representatives.
“We understand this, and we have evidence that these numbers are being discussed between America and Russia. Unfortunately, President Trump—whom we greatly respect as the leader of a nation we deeply admire—lives in a disinformation space,” Zelensky said.
He added that trust ratings are not the main issue at the moment. Instead, Ukraine’s priority is defending itself from Russian attacks and securing the return of prisoners of war.
“I have yet to receive an answer from the United States regarding my request to increase the number of Patriot missile systems, despite raising the issue repeatedly,” Zelensky added.
Zelensky stated that the majority of Ukrainians do not support making concessions to Russia. According to him, “only 1% of the population supports making all concessions to Russia.”
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He stressed that the situation cannot be resolved solely through documents or agreements, as “no one in Ukraine trusts Putin.”
The president also said that during his visit to Ukraine, Keith Kellogg should personally speak with people to understand the true sentiment in the country.
“It is important for me that he walks around Kyiv, other cities, and talks to people. Let him ask whether they trust their president, whether they trust Putin, what they think about Trump’s statements,” Zelensky said.
He also revealed plans to visit the front with Kellogg so he can speak directly with Ukrainian soldiers.
“Let’s go, and let him ask the military: are they ready to vote urgently now to go home, give everything to Russia, and have no security guarantees? Let him talk to the people who live and fight here,” the president told reporters.
According to Zelensky, the main goal is to allow Kellogg to witness the situation in Ukraine firsthand. “If he has the desire, he will get it,” he said.
He also highlighted Ukraine’s military expenditures over the past three years, stating that the country has spent $320 billion on armaments, with $67 billion provided by the United States.
“I think we need to understand the aid. We have absolute figures. The war cost us $320 billion—$120 billion was covered by us, the people of Ukraine, and $200 billion came from the United States and the EU,” he said.
Zelensky clarified that he was referring specifically to military aid: “This is a package of weapons worth $320 billion.”
“In total, the US separately gave us about $67 billion in weapons. Additionally, we received another $31.5 billion in financial assistance for the budget,” he added.
Zelensky also revealed that the US agreement on rare earth metals did not include any security guarantees for Ukraine. He said that the document lacked clarity and was still being finalized.
“The document was not clear. It was clear only in one thing—we would have to give 50% of everything that is listed in the document,” the president told reporters.
He added that he was prepared to release the proposed draft.
“I said that the document is not ready,” Zelensky said.
According to the president, the agreement did not specify security guarantees for Ukraine. He said that during his meeting with US Vice President J.D. Vance in Munich, they agreed that such guarantees should be included.
“There is not a word about security guarantees. And at the second meeting with Vance, we agreed that there should be something about it, but no one knows what exactly,” he said.
Zelensky said that he personally proposed adding specifics to the memorandum.
“I said that there should be some positive—you write some guarantees, and we will write some percentages in the memorandum. They only told me 50%. I said: ‘Okay, no.’ And then let the lawyers continue working. So, they haven’t finished the work,” the president said.
Speaking at the press conference, he reiterated that Ukraine seeks security guarantees and aims to end the war this year. However, he noted that the US rejects NATO membership for Ukraine as a security guarantee.
Zelensky said that the US had helped Russian President Vladimir Putin end three years of isolation in the West, a day after top US and Russian officials met for talks in Saudi Arabia.
“I believe that the United States helped Putin to break out of years of isolation,” Zelensky told reporters. “Nobody is upset. We are ready for anything.”
He believes that the Russians, including Putin, are pleased because discussions are now taking place with them.
“Yesterday, there were already signals positioning them as the ‘victim.’ This is something new... And if Secretary of State Rubio officially calls this a ‘conflict,’ it marks a softening of the policy,” Zelensky added.
He also highlighted Ukraine’s shortage of air defense missiles for American-made Patriot systems.
When asked about security guarantees for Ukraine, Zelensky responded that if full guarantees were not possible, Ukraine should at least be allowed to produce its own Patriot missiles under license.
“At 3, 4, 5 a.m., the commander calls me and says: ‘We are near this city, and we have no missiles for the Patriot systems—we’ve exhausted them (…) There are eight [Russian] missiles incoming, but we have nothing left to intercept them,’” Zelensky said.
In the context of security guarantees, he questioned whether the US could provide sufficient Patriot systems if it opposed sending troops or allowing Ukraine to join NATO.
He suggested that Ukraine could manage with 20 Patriot systems and a license from the US to produce Patriot missiles, in exchange for the absence of American military personnel in Ukraine.
The president added that he had begun discussions with European leaders regarding military funding.
“I believe that they will be ready to finance the Armed Forces of Ukraine if the US does not do this,” he said.
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