Trump and Starmer Hold First White House Talks on Ukraine: “Dictator” Remark and “Gifted” Aid

U.S. President Donald Trump and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer met at the White House on February 27 for their first in-person talks after Trump’s election as president.

Starmer is the second European leader to meet with Trump this week, following French President Emmanuel Macron’s visit.

During their discussions in the Oval Office, Trump claimed he did not recall referring to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy as a “dictator.”

“Did I say that? I can’t believe I said that,” Trump responded when questioned by journalists about his comment, originally made this month on his Truth Social platform.

The talks also touched on military aid to Ukraine. At one point, Starmer corrected Trump’s assertion that European countries providing assistance to Ukraine “get their money back.”

“We don’t get the money back,” Trump clarified, before blaming former President Joe Biden for not structuring military aid as a loan.

Starmer responded, stating: “We’re not getting all of [our aid back]. Quite a bit of ours was given, was gifted.”

Trump also expressed confidence that Russian leader Vladimir Putin would uphold any peace agreement reached to end the war in Ukraine.

“I’ve known him [Putin] for a long time now and I don’t believe he’s going to violate his word … When we make the deal, I think the deal’s going to hold,” he said.

Previously, it was reported that British Prime Minister Keir Starmer called on the United States to provide a security “backstop” for any future European peacekeeping mission in Ukraine, arguing that only such a measure could guarantee Kyiv a lasting peace rather than a temporary ceasefire.