Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy praised European leaders at an EU summit in Brussels as his relationship with U.S. President Donald Trump came under strain. Tensions flared after a reported Starlink restriction in Ukraine, and Zelenskyy is reportedly under pressure to soften his public criticism of Trump.
Zelenskyy praised Europe's leaders on Friday, thanking them for backing Kyiv since the start of the war. According to CNBC, he described them in Brussels as "real leaders", at a summit focused on securing further support for Ukraine.
Starlink restriction strains U.S.-Ukraine ties
The remarks come as tensions between Washington and Kyiv have flared after SpaceX's Starlink service was restricted in Ukraine earlier this week, slowing the connectivity Ukraine relies on to defend against Russian attacks. Serhiy Derkach, Ukraine's First Deputy Minister for Recovery, Infrastructure and Transport, told CNBC that Russia feels this is its moment to inflict more pain on Ukraine's civilian infrastructure.
Derkach added that Ukraine is moving toward very harsh weeks and months and needs its partners' support now more than ever.
EU officials reportedly urge a softer tone
Zelenskyy is also reportedly facing increasing pressure to tone down public criticism of Trump. Three officials familiar with the summit preparations told the Financial Times they plan to privately urge him to do so when they meet him in Brussels on Friday.
According to Politico, some EU leaders are also concerned about how Zelenskyy handles the relationship, and one EU diplomat called his public criticism of the president not helpful.
Energy ceasefire remains unconfirmed
Zelenskyy told reporters that Ukraine wants to end the war as quickly as possible but sees no signals from Russia that it is ready to do so. On Wednesday, he lamented that Russia had not respected the energy ceasefire announced by Trump.
Trump announced last week that the two countries had agreed to stop attacking each other's power infrastructure, in an apparent attempt to ease oil and diesel prices ahead of the U.S. midterm elections in November. Zelenskyy said Ukraine had held off strikes on Russian energy targets for three days, while Russia has not confirmed it agreed to a ceasefire and says only that talks are ongoing.
Source: CNBC
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