ExclusiveWhat Fueled the Explosive Clash Between Trump and Zelenskyy?

The explosive exchange between Donald Trump and Volodymyr Zelensky at the White House may have seemed like it came out of the blue. What you're doing is very disrespectful. But according to multiple sources familiar with the matter, it follows weeks of frustration in the Trump camp. The US president and his top aides have, the sources said, seen the Ukrainian leader as an obstacle to their goals of quickly ending the war, restoring ties with Moscow and sealing a potentially lucrative minerals deal. You should be thanking the president. It's been a tough thing to watch as an American. From Washington, former Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defence for Europe and NATO John Townsend described the incident as theatre, though said it was maybe not pre-planned. It was something where they certainly were not, they didn't hesitate to jump in and make this into a ballroom, a ballroom brawl. Trump has long taken an adversarial approach to Zelensky and Ukraine. But the divide has ballooned in recent days as talks over the much-anticipated minerals deal got bogged down. Two White House officials said there had been no attempts to ambush the Ukrainian president and US Senator Lindsey Graham said he had hoped the deal would go over well. What I saw in the Oval Office was disrespectful and I don't know if we can ever do business with Zelensky again. You don't have the cards right now. With us, you start having cards. Townsend, however, likened the exchange to a mafia shakedown. You better do this, you better sign this or, you know, it was just the rudeness of it. Exasperation over the minerals deal had threatened to derail Zelensky's trip even before it began. One White House official said on Wednesday that they didn't think an invitation made sense after the Ukrainian president appeared to waver on signing. But a deal was later reached for Zelensky to fly out. Trump has, however, had other frustrations. In recent weeks, he's told his closest advisors that he doesn't like the way in which Zelensky has tried to drum up US support for Ukraine. The US president claimed Zelensky has used showmanship to try and win points with the media and Congress. I think he very much overplayed his hand. Trump has also openly pushed for elections in Ukraine and blasted Zelensky for not holding them after his five-year term ran out in 2024. Ukrainian legislation prohibits holding elections during a state of martial law, which was declared the day Russia invaded in February 2022. Trump has also falsely claimed that Zelensky has an approval rating of 4%. A poll this month put it at 63%. At the same time, Trump has been upending decades of US foreign policy by publicly siding with Vladimir Putin and saying he trusts the Russian leader in his desire to end the war. That's a belief that most Western officials rebuke. Keys backers had hoped the deal would help win more support from Trump's Republicans for future aid. Congress last approved assistance for Ukraine in April when Democrats controlled the Senate and Joe Biden was in the White House. Even then, Congressional Republicans slow-walked the bill under pressure from Trump. That led to delays in delivering weapons, putting Ukrainian troops on the back foot in the battlefield. Friday's White House meeting ended without a minerals deal being signed and with Zelensky being told to leave. But Townsend says the relationship is repairable. This in and of itself will not stop the process, he said, because both sides want the minerals deal and negotiations with Russia.