March 1st 2025.
President Donald Trump is not the first US leader to have a heated exchange with Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky. The fiery Oval Office spat that took place on Friday was seen by people all around the world. Interestingly, President Joe Biden, who is a Democrat, also lost his temper with Zelensky during a phone call in June 2022, just a few months after the Russian invasion in February.
According to NBC News, Biden had called Zelensky to inform him that he had cleared $1 billion in military assistance for Ukraine. However, before he could even finish speaking, Zelensky began listing all the additional help and items that he needed. This frustrated Biden, who raised his voice and told Zelensky that the people had been very generous and that his administration and the US military were working hard to support Ukraine. He also asked Zelensky to show some gratitude.
President Trump also made a similar point to Zelensky during their meeting on Friday. Interestingly, there are more similarities between the two leaders' interactions. Tensions had been building between Trump and Zelensky, just like they did between Biden and Zelensky in 2022. Biden and his top aides were frustrated that they were doing everything they could to help Ukraine, but Zelensky kept publicly focusing on things he had not received. This frustration boiled over during the phone call, but it did not turn into a heated exchange like the one on Friday.
In recent weeks, tensions between Trump and Zelensky had been on the rise. Trump had even called Zelensky a "dictator" and accused him of clinging onto power without calling for elections. In response, Zelensky had accused Trump of living in a "disinformation space". However, during a news conference before their meeting, Trump pretended to have no recollection of making those statements.
There is one significant difference between the two blowouts. After the 2022 phone call, Zelensky had shown contrition and publicly acknowledged the importance of the conversation. He had even said, "I am grateful for this support. It is especially important for our defense in Donbas." However, when asked about the Oval Office blowout on Friday, Zelensky told a Fox News host that he had not done anything "bad". Although he did admit that the spat was not a good thing to happen.
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