Zelensky ‘pleads with US Senate for help on battlefield’ after Trump calls to replace Ukrainian leader

DAILYMAIL.COM • 2h ago

By MELISSA KOENIG, US REPORTER 01:46 20 Oct 2026, updated 01:46 20 Oct 2026

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is said to have pleaded with a bipartisan group of US senators for aid in its war against Russia, even as President Donald Trump called for his ouster.

The Ukrainian leader has claimed over the past few days that US officials failed last week to share information about impending missile attacks and limited the military’s access to Elon Musk’s Starlink satellite internet service.

He has also said that the US has failed to send weapons that are crucial to Ukraine’s fight against Russia – and suggested that the Trump administration secretly imposed these restrictions in an attempt to force Zelensky to accept a deal to end the war in a manner that would be favorable to Russia.

Trump and other White House officials have repeatedly fought back against the claims, denying that anyone in the administration throttled the satellite service and saying that the lack of warnings about possible strikes last week was the result of a software problem.

But as Zelensky doubled down on his claims on Monday, Trump fought back.

‘Zelensky doesn’t know what he is talking about,’ the president told reporters outside the White House.

‘All I want for Russia and Ukraine is for them to stop the stupid war. Anything I can do to end the war whether somebody’s there or not, whatever I can do to end the war, I will have done the world a big, big favor.

‘If he would have listened to me, he would have made a much better deal a long time ago and have a million people living from his side,’ Trump then claimed of Zelensky, adding: ‘I think there’s time for somebody else to negotiate on behalf of Ukraine.’

The president’s remarks came as Zelensky told a virtual meeting of US senators that the current situation in Ukraine is ‘the most difficult’ since ‘the very beginning of this war,’ according to CNN.

He then said it appears as if ‘some political decision has been made to slow down support for us’ as he laid out the various problems his country has been facing.

The Ukrainian leader went on to tell the bipartisan group of senators, led by Republican Thom Tillis, of North Carolina, and Democrat Richard Blumenthal, of Connecticut, that the US military’s Starshield satellite systems remain partially restricted despite the White House’s claims, Axios reports.

‘We still have no explanation for this, just different strange stories we’re hearing, unfortunately,’ Zelensky said, according to a transcript of the meeting.

Ukraine’s forces rely on the technology for frontline communications, including about possible Russian drone and missile attacks, and with the satellite access restricted it is hampering the country’s ability to shoot down Russian attack drones.

Zelensky also shared how on three different occasions over the past week, including on Sunday night, Ukraine did not receive early warnings from the US about impending Russian ballistic attacks.

He suggested the failure was a sign that intelligence sharing between the US and Ukraine has been curbed, noting: ‘We have received no clear explanation from Washington [as to] why this is happening.’

Zelensky further claimed that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has refused to sign off on the delivery of Patriot interceptors and AIM-9x missiles for Ukraine’s air defense system – even though NATO countries have already paid for them.

‘We have almost no Patriot interceptors left from the US partners,’ Zelensky bemoaned. ‘All of this suggests that some political decision has been made to slow down support for us.

‘We want to understand what is happening, why it’s happening and where all of this is heading.’

Tillis said after the meeting that Congress ‘remains committed to standing with Ukraine and our European allies to end Russia’s brutal aggression and secure lasting peace.’

Blumenthal also said that ‘bipartisan support for Ukraine was clear and unequivocal, which we’ll be expressing in upcoming action.

‘Appeasement won’t work with Putin, a thug who understands only strength and force,’ he said.

Despite Zelensky’s claims at the private virtual meeting, Trump insisted on Monday that the US is still sharing intelligence with Ukraine and said he did not know who ordered the throttling of the Starlink satellite system ‘but I am going to find out.’

Secretary of State Marco Rubio separately also said that the lack of warnings last week resulted from a ‘software problem involving [Ukraine’s] early warning system,’ but he could not speak as to what happened on Sunday night, when missiles struck the capital city of Kyiv.

The war of words between the Trump administration and Zelensky have been rising ever since the US commander-in-chief struck a deal with Russian President Vladimir Putin to buy hundreds of thousands of tons of Russian diesel in an effort to bring down fuel prices ahead of the midterm elections.

Zelensky then met with Trump envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner on Sunday, who asked the Ukrainian leader to stop attacking Russian oil refineries.

The Ukrainian leader proposed at the meeting that Ukraine halt strikes on refineries for 30 days, and in return the US would supply Ukraine with Patriot interceptors so it could defend itself from Russian ballistic missiles, Zelensky recounted to the US senators on Monday.

But, he said, Witkoff and Kushner did not show any openness to the proposal.

He also claimed that the two envoys threatened at the meeting on Sunday that Trump could cut off Ukraine from US intelligence and stop selling weapons if it continued to ignore the Trump administration’s requests not to target Russian oil refineries.

US officials have denied such a threat, saying Witkoff and Kushner instead told the Ukrainians that the US was a strong partner, providing munitions and intelligence.

As a result, they argued, Ukraine shouldn’t take actions that hurt American consumers by targeting Russian oil refineries.

Tensions then rose once again on Monday amid reports that Putin, Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping could meet next month in China.

The reports fed fears in Ukraine that Trump is only encouraging Putin to continue the conflict and that the two men are conspiring to eventually impose an unfavorable settlement of the war on Kyiv.

Trump has since said he would consider a trilateral meeting with Putin and Xi Jinping, but said the sit down would focus on denuclearization and not Russia’s war with Ukraine.

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