“No, actually, frankly, we paid,” Macron said. He said he has a mix of grants, loans and loan guarantees, as in the US. “To be clear, we provided real money,” he said.
The smiling Trump looked skeptical and waved as if to say he wouldn't buy it.
Trump, who didn't mediate the end of the war 24 hours or before taking office, said he had promised to do it on the campaign trail, and as he began with Putin, “to end the war within weeks.” He said that we can. If we are smart. “He added, “If we are not smart, it will continue and we will lose young and beautiful people.”
The president underscored his demand that Ukraine sign over tens of billions of dollars of mineral rights to repay US military aid. But Treasury Secretary Scott Becent said that US-Ukrainian negotiators are “very close” to the deal on a “one-yard line” and Trump will come to Washington for Zelensky to sign this soon. He said he could. The week or next week.
Trump's return to power has convulsed ties with European allies that threaten to impose tariffs on consumer goods, demanding that military spending be increased beyond its previous targets and be broken through Ukraine Masu. The relationship was inflamed by a speech in Munich by Vice President JD Vance, who suggested that the biggest security threat to European countries was not Russia or China, but their own political and cultural policies.
Macron held two meetings of European leaders to develop a plan to deal with the United States, which appears to be changing its favor from traditional allies to Russia. However, he later hurried to Washington to hold an organized meeting with Trump, strengthening the president in negotiations on the fate of Ukraine.
