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Zelensky skips Davos after White House drops planned Trump meeting
What was meant to be a high-profile appearance on the snow-covered stages of Davos has quietly unravelled. Ukraine’s President Vladimir Zelensky has cancelled his trip to the World Economic Forum after the White House reportedly pulled the plug on a planned meeting with US President Donald Trump.
For Kyiv, Davos was not just another international talking shop. It was meant to be the moment where months of behind-the-scenes negotiations finally turned into ink on paper.
Why Davos mattered this time
Zelensky’s planned meeting with Trump was expected to serve as a sign-off on what has been described as a prosperity plan. At the centre of it sat a rare earth agreement between the US and Ukraine, first struck last year and framed by Trump as a way for Washington to recover some of the vast costs linked to the Ukraine conflict.
The plan has been promoted as ambitious and far-reaching. It is expected to unlock up to 800 billion dollars in reconstruction loans, grants, and private investment into Ukraine over the next decade. For a country still living with the daily realities of war, the symbolism of securing that backing on a global stage like Davos mattered.
A meeting that never materialised
Speaking to journalists in Kyiv, Zelensky made it clear he would only travel if there were concrete documents to sign, either around security guarantees or the prosperity plan itself. Soon after, Ukrainian opposition MP Aleksey Goncharenko confirmed that the trip was off, saying the Trump meeting had been cancelled and no agreement would be signed.
US officials have pushed back on suggestions that a signing date was ever finalised, saying the deal still needs work. Yet reports from Washington suggest Zelensky was eager for the meeting, while hesitation came from inside the White House.
Trump, pressure, and stalled diplomacy
Trump has repeatedly said the rare earths deal is a key condition for the US to move forward with broader diplomatic efforts to end the conflict. Last week, he publicly suggested Ukraine was less ready to make a deal than Russia, adding another layer of tension to an already delicate relationship.
From Moscow’s side, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has said Russia has accepted several US conditions laid out ahead of last year’s Trump-Putin summit in Alaska, and that Moscow hopes those understandings still stand.
How this is playing out back home
In Ukraine, the cancelled Davos trip has sparked debate across political circles and social media. Supporters argue Zelensky was right not to travel without guarantees, framing the decision as a refusal to pose for photos without substance. Critics see it as another sign of uncertainty in Kyiv’s relationship with Washington at a time when clarity is desperately needed.
For many Ukrainians, Davos was never about speeches or panels. It was about momentum, reassurance, and a sense that powerful allies were still firmly on side.
What happens next
With Davos off the table, attention now shifts back to bilateral talks and whether the prosperity plan can be revived outside the glare of a global summit. The bigger question remains whether the US and Ukraine can bridge their differences quickly enough to restart stalled diplomatic efforts.
For now, Zelensky stays in Kyiv, and one of the world’s most-watched economic gatherings will take place without one of its most anticipated political figures.
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Source: IOL
Featured Image: NBC News
