Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Wednesday expressed gratitude for the "strong" emphasis made on bolstering his country's air defenses after meeting US President Donald Trump in the Turkish capital Ankara.
In a statement on US social media platform X, Zelenskyy said that he and Trump had a "good" meeting.
"I'm grateful for the strong emphasis placed on strengthening Ukraine's air defense to better protect people's lives," Zelenskyy said, referring to the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war.
Zelenskyy said that he and Trump spoke about "some ideas" that could strengthen their positions and "bring peace closer," going on to say that he counts on their teams to follow up on everything discussed today promptly.
"We also talked diplomacy-we are trying to make it work. We will keep working productively to make it happen," he added.
Zelenskyy and Trump met on the sidelines of the NATO summit in the Turkish capital Ankara, during which the US president said both his Ukrainian and Russian counterparts want to reach a settlement to end the ongoing war.
For his part, Zelenskyy reiterated his gratitude to Trump and the American people for supporting his country, saying that Ukraine is also happy to begin work with the US on a drone deal.
Zelenskyy added he does not know what conditions Putin wants for establishing peace, but said they are "changing anyway, because at the very beginning of full-scale war, he was stronger. And now, I think he is losing initiative on the battlefield."
Prior to meeting Trump, Zelenskyy held a meeting with members of a bipartisan delegation from both houses of the US Congress.
"We had an in-depth discussion about the prospects for diplomacy and what is required for it to succeed. I informed them about the Patriot interceptor shortage and Russian attacks on our people. Right now, contributions to PURL (Prioritized Ukraine Requirements List) and other air defense deliveries are the top priority for defense," Zelenskyy said.
The Ukrainian president also held meetings on Wednesday with European Council President Antonio Costa, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, South Korean President Lee Jae Myung, Polish President Karol Nawrocki, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, and Bulgarian Prime Minister Rumen Radev.
