CHARLOTTE, N.C. (QUEEN CITY NEWS) — Local Ukrainians are reacting to the tense meeting that took place Friday between Ukraine’s President Volodomyr Zelenskyy and President Donald Trump.
The meeting was tense, described as a shouting match between the two leaders, and Vice President J.D. Vance. Trump had previously referred to Zelenskyy as a “dictator” and has met with Russian leaders about ending the war between Russia and Ukraine.
Zelenskyy pushed back on the idea of trusting Russia during his testy exchange with Trump, while Trump said Zelenskyy was not “at all grateful” for the aid given to Ukraine by the United States.
Anna Bondar, founder and CEO of Ukraine House Charlotte, which provides a space for the Ukrainian community and offers children of Ukrainian refugees language lessons, watched Friday’s meeting between the two leaders, and ultimately sympathized with Zelenskyy, based on her own experiences.
“What we feel is a great amount of frustration, but it’s not frustration at somebody for not helping,” said Bondar. “It’s the frustration of the situation.”
“For us, it’s not business and it’s not about deals,” she added. “But also, we tried. Ukraine has tried. The war has now been going on for three years. Ukraine has tried to negotiate with Russia.”
Another Ukrainian living in the Charlotte area, George Rubanenko, noted, “I still have a reasonable hope that two parties will come to some sort of agreement when the emotions go, when emotions subside.”
While support for Zelenskyy among Ukrainians locally seems to be largely solid, there are others who have called for the Ukrainian president to step down.
“He either needs to resign and send somebody over that we can do business with, or he needs to change,” said Republican U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina.
