Trump-Zelensky clash divides US Republicans, dims aid prospects

WASHINGTON: An angry White House clash between Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy and Donald Trump divided the U.S. president’s fellow Republicans and dimmed prospects that Congress will approve any further aid for Kyiv in its war with Russia.

Some Republicans who had long supported Ukraine lashed out at Zelenskiy after Friday’s exchange.

Senator Bill Hagerty of Tennessee, who was ambassador to Japan during Trump’s first term, posted on X: “The United States of America will no longer be taken for granted.” But even as most Republicans rallied behind Trump and Vance, some joined Democrats in defending Ukraine.

New York Representative Mike Lawler, in a post on X, called the Oval Office meeting “a missed opportunity for both the United States and Ukraine — an agreement that would undoubtedly result in stronger economic and security cooperation.” Representative Don Bacon, a moderate Republican from Nebraska, threw his support behind Kyiv. “Representative Michael McCaul, chairman emeritus of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, said he still hoped for a real and lasting peace that ensures Ukraine would be free from further Russian aggression.