In light of his disagreement with Trump.. Zelensky: I thank the “real” leaders for standing with us

- European leaders line up behind Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky during a summit held in Belgium on Friday, in light of the increasing tension in relations between the United States and Ukraine. Recently, the White House has put increasing pressure on Zelensky to stop strikes targeting Russian oil facilities, even as Russian attacks on Ukraine's energy infrastructure continue unabated.

US President Donald Trump surprised both Zelensky and European leaders last week by concluding an agreement allowing the export of Russian diesel; A move that Zelensky said made him feel betrayed. On Sunday, Trump announced that an agreement had been reached on an “energy truce” between Russia and Ukraine, noting that it was “effective immediately.”

However, there has been no confirmation from Moscow, while Zelensky - despite his support for such a truce - indicated that he had no prior knowledge of it. During his arrival at the summit in Brussels, surrounded by senior European Union leaders, Zelensky did not address the deteriorating relations with the United States, nor the unrest that Ukraine witnessed this week regarding the exchange of American intelligence information and the Internet service “Starshield.” But he was keen to emphasize the strength of his relationship with the European Union.

“I am very grateful for this tremendous support that we are receiving from the European Council, the Commission and the leaders - the real leaders - for standing with us since the beginning of this war,” Zelensky said as he entered the summit. The Ukrainian president added: “Of course, we want to end this war as quickly as possible.

But we do not currently see any indications from the Russian side that they are ready to do so, that is, to end this war. That's why we have to prepare for winter," he said, adding that "energy needs" are at the top of his list of priorities. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said: "We supported the 'energy truce' called for by President Trump, but we saw that Russia did not respect it - not even for a minute.

Instead, Russia has escalated the situation, so we have to increase the pressure on it.” Zelensky added: “It is not only about energy, but also about air defense and finance.

I am grateful that the European Union stands by us.” In the midst of a week full of diplomatic challenges, Ukraine also ran out of missiles for the American-made Patriot air defense system, making it more vulnerable to Russian ballistic missile attacks, an informed source told Ofoq News on Thursday.