Zelensky Blasted by Ukrainian-American Congresswoman After Trump Clash

Representative Victoria Spartz, an Indiana Republican and a Ukrainian American, backed President Donald Trump and Vice President JD Vance in calling out Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky following Friday’s heated Oval Office exchange, saying that Zelensky is “doing a serious disservice to the Ukrainian people.”

Newsweek has reached out to Spartz’s press team for comment via email on Saturday.

Why It Matters

Spartz, the first Ukrainian-born person to serve in Congress, backs Trump and his approach to the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war, recently saying that “Trump is the right leader to stop this war.” She has previously voted against aid packages for Ukraine.

The unprecedented Oval Office meeting has drawn widespread attention, with some Trump supporters praising him, others expressing concern, and many international leaders and Democrats criticizing the president and voicing support for Zelensky.

Under the Biden administration, Zelensky was a close U.S. ally. Since taking office, however, Trump has called him a “dictator,” falsely claimed Ukraine started the war, and without evidence said Zelensky is deeply unpopular in Ukraine.

What To Know

The Friday exchange was a striking moment of open antagonism in the Oval Office, a space typically reserved for formal diplomacy, highlighted the president’s shifted approach to the Russia-Ukraine war, now in its third year. Trump made clear his pressure on Zelensky to agree to a deal securing U.S. interests in Ukraine’s valuable minerals and to pursue a diplomatic resolution to the war on his terms.

The White House’s rapid response team shared a clip of the televised exchange on social media, which Spartz reposted to criticize the Ukrainian leader.

“Zelensky is doing a serious disservice to the Ukrainian people insulting the American President and the American people – just to appease Europeans and increase his low polling in Ukraine after he failed miserably to defend his country,” the congresswoman wrote. “This is not a theater act but a real war!”

During Friday’s fiery exchange, Vance and Trump often cut off Zelensky and repeatedly called him “disrespectful.”

In mid-February, Trump told reporters that Zelensky’s approval rating was “down at 4 percent.” He did not provide evidence of this low mark. Zelensky immediately rejected Trump’s claim as Russian “disinformation,” prompting Trump to fire back on Truth Social that Zelensky is “a dictator without elections,” and repeated his assertion from the day before that Zelensky was “very low” in the polls.

There is no credible poll in Ukraine that shows Zelensky with an approval rating in the single digits, with most surveys consistently showing him in the 50-60 percent approval range.

Spartz furthered her remarks on Friday during an appearance on former Florida Representative Matt Gaetz‘s show on the conservative outlet, One America News Network (OANN).

“It’s such a disservice to the Ukrainian people to play hero and politics and trying to increase his rating!” the congresswoman said about Zelensky. Spartz added that the Ukrainian president was “so insulting to the American people,” and that she found it “outrageous” after “how much was done by us for Ukraine and for Europe.”

The U.S. State Department reported in January that since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, the United States has provided $65.9 billion in military assistance to Kyiv.

Congress has appropriated approximately $174.2 billion since 2022 “in supplemental appropriations in response to Russia’s war against Ukraine,” according to a January Congressional Research Service report.

What People Are Saying

French President Emmanuel Macron wrote on X, formerly Twitter, on Friday: “There is an aggressor: Russia. There is a people being aggressed: Ukraine. We were all right to help Ukraine and sanction Russia three years ago and to continue doing so. We, that’s the Americans, the Europeans, Canadians, Japanese, and many others. Thank you to all those who have helped and continue to do so. And respect to those who, from the beginning, have been fighting. Because they are fighting for their dignity, their independence, for their children, and for the security of Europe.”

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio wrote on X: “Thank you @POTUS for standing up for America in a way that no President has ever had the courage to do before.”

Dmitry Medvedev, deputy chair of Russia’s Security Council and the country’s former president and prime minister, wrote in an X post on Friday, referring to Zelensky: “The insolent pig finally got a proper slap down in the Oval Office. And @realDonaldTrump is right: The Kiev regime is “gambling with WWIII.”

Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk wrote on X: “Dear [Zelensky], dear Ukrainian friends, you are not alone.”

Adam Kinzinger, a Trump critic and former Illinois Republican representative, wrote in an X post: “On behalf of many Americans, don’t thank us we THANK YOU Ukraine for your work. Eat shi**Vance.” In another post, the former congressman wrote, “Trump is a Russian agent. I’m sorry but F you Donald.”

Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene, a Georgia Republican, on X: “President Trump and Vice President Vance will put America First every single time. Putting Zelensky in his place while he disrespects the U.S. in the Oval Office is exactly what American leadership should look like. This is what We The People want to see!”

Senator Lindsey Graham, a South Carolina Republican, said during an appearance on Fox News on Friday: “This was a missed opportunity, and the question for me for the Ukrainian people: I don’t know if Zelensky can ever get you to where you want to go with the United States. Either he dramatically changes, or you need to get somebody new.”

What Happens Next

The White House meeting ended abruptly with Zelensky leaving without signing the minerals deal, which White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt previously described as “very close to the finish line.”

Moments later, Trump posted on Truth Social that Zelensky is “not ready for peace” and can return to the U.S. once he is.

Zelensky expressed his gratitude to the U.S., writing on X: “Thank you America, thank you for your support, thank you for this visit. Thank you @POTUS, Congress, and the American people. Ukraine needs just and lasting peace, and we are working exactly for that.”