'Lack of respect, sense of entitlement': Vance on what went wrong with Zelenskyy meeting

US Vice President JD Vance has given a scathing assessment of the dramatic meeting between Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and US President Donald Trump, claiming what he saw as a "lack of respect" and a "sense of entitlement" from the Ukrainian leader.
This exchange, which unfolded publicly during a press conference at the White House, would lead to Trump temporarily halting military aid to Ukraine, escalating the tensions between the two nations.
Vance, who was present during the meeting, explained that for the first 25 to 30 minutes of the press conference, Trump attempted to be gracious, offering diplomatic gestures even when Zelenskyy’s remarks seemed exaggerated or untrue, the VP told Fox News in an interview. "
The President normally tries to be diplomatic in these situations," Vance said. But things took a turn for the worse when the conversation shifted to the matter of peace negotiations with Russia.

According to Vance, it was Zelenskyy’s refusal to engage in peace talks that marked the critical breakdown in the meeting. "The President has set a very clear goal for his administration. He wants the killing to stop," Vance said, noting that both Zelenskyy and Russian President Vladimir Putin needed to come to the negotiating table. "Zelensky wasn’t yet there, and I think, frankly, still isn’t there," he continued.
Tensions escalated further when Vance himself became involved in the exchange. After a Polish journalist raised a question, Zelenskyy reacted aggressively to one of Vance's answers, which seemed to set the Ukrainian president off. "I tried to diffuse the situation," Vance recalled. "We were in front of cameras, and I suggested we continue the discussion privately. But the President was clear—he wanted the conversation to remain public for the American people to see."
This public confrontation in the Oval Office, coupled with Zelenskyy’s insistence on demanding more from the US without showing signs of a willingness to negotiate with Russia, resulted in the breakdown of talks, as per Vance.
"Zelensky was gambling with the lives of millions of people," Trump later remarked. "You're gambling with World War Three, and what you're doing is very disrespectful to the country that’s backed you far more than a lot of people say they should."
Trump’s dissatisfaction with Zelenskyy culminated in a temporary suspension of military aid to Ukraine, a decision that Vance supported. A White House official confirmed that the pause in assistance was due to Ukraine's apparent lack of commitment to peace negotiations. "The President has been clear that he is focused on peace," the official stated. "We need our partners to be committed to that goal as well."
The suspension of aid comes after a series of tensions between the US and Ukraine, which were amplified by Zelenskyy's recent comments. Following the chaotic press conference, Zelenskyy had suggested that an agreement to end the war was still "very, very far away," a remark that Trump and his allies saw as an indication that the Ukrainian leader was not serious about peace talks. "He doesn’t want there to be peace as long as he has America's backing," Trump declared in a post on his social media platform.