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U.S. President Donald Trump has held back-to-back closed-door meetings at the White House with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. The discussions are believed to have focused on finding solutions to the protracted wars in Ukraine and Iran.
Reporting from Washington, here is correspondent Lee Hanseok.
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Unlike previous occasions when he unleashed outspoken remarks in front of reporters prior to talks, President Trump kept both meetings entirely private.
Ukrainian President Zelenskyy was the first to visit the White House.
In stark contrast to their meeting in February of last year, when President Trump publicly reprimanded him harshly, this session proceeded in a remarkably friendly atmosphere.
President Zelenskyy stated that they intensively discussed the authorization for producing Patriot interceptor missiles and negotiations to end the war.
Analysts suggest that with diplomatic achievements stalled regarding the war in Iran, President Trump may be turning his attention to the situation in Ukraine to secure joint diplomatic wins.
During the subsequent meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu, the two leaders reaffirmed their shared goal of preventing Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons.
Just before the talks, President Trump reportedly expressed frustration toward Prime Minister Netanyahu over why details regarding intelligence on underground Iranian nuclear facilities were being leaked externally. However, following the meeting, Prime Minister Netanyahu dismissed rumors of a rift, calling it one of the best meetings ever.
[Trump / U.S. President (Yesterday) : (Do you agree with Prime Minister Netanyahu on the Iran issue?) Pretty much. Yes, there are slight differences, but for the most part, we agree.]
Amid these successive meetings, tensions in the Middle East are escalating further.
After President Trump announced that damages to ships in the Strait of Hormuz would be compensated using frozen Iranian assets, the Iranian military issued a strong and immediate warning, threatening to completely block the passage of the Strait of Hormuz for any ships belonging to countries and companies that acquire Iranian assets.
Attention is now focused on whether President Trump's moves to seek a diplomatic exit can alter the course of these intricately intertwined conflicts.
(Photo courtesy of Oh Jung-shik | Video Editing: Kim Jin-won)
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