Ukraine’s ambassador to the US Oksana Markarova went viral for her mortified reaction to Volodymyr Zelensky’s train wreck of an Oval Office meeting with President Trump and Vice President JD Vance on Friday.
Oksana Markarova dropped her head into her hands in a textbook face-palm as the Ukrainian president dug himself a diplomatic hole during the talks with Trump and members of his cabinet that was expected to end with the signing of a deal giving the US a stake in Ukraine’s rare earth elements.
The 48-year-old Ukrainian ambassador was on the radar of press cameras as Zelensky repeatedly looked her way over the course of the testy exchanges between the wartime leader and his US counterparts.
“Are you saying you don’t want a ceasefire? I want a ceasefire. Because you’ll get a ceasefire faster than an agreement,” Trump said as Zelensky attempted to talk over him.
“I said to you, ‘with guarantees,’” Zelensky responded. “Ask our people about a ceasefire, what they think.”
At this moment, Markarova drops and shakes her head — rubbing the bridge of her nose in frustration and disbelief.
The emote caught the attention of White House Deputy Chief of Staff Dan Scavino.
“Ukrainian Ambassador understands that Zelensky is a complete and total disaster,” he wrote in a post on X.
Markarova was not the only Ukraine-booster to be disappointed with the unforeseen diplomatic disaster.
Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC), who prepped Zelensky before the Oval Office meeting, said that the Ukrainian president needs to consider resigning after the performance that threw a wrench in the minerals deal that’s been described by Trump as a precursor to peace deal between Ukraine and Russia.
Zelensky, 47, was chewed out by both Trump and Vance, who accused the Ukrainian leader of trying to litigate “in front of the American media,” with both American pols calling the former comedian “disrespectful.”
“Do you think that it’s respectful to come into the Oval Office of the United States of America and attack the administration that is trying to prevent the destruction of your country,” Vance fumed during the meeting.
Users on X claimed that Zelensky cursed under his breath as the vice president railed against Ukraine for conscripting citizens off the street and sending them to the front lines of the war.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who was in the Oval Office for the meeting, also expressed frustration with Zelensky.
“There was no need for him to go in there and become antagonistic,” Rubio said in an interview on CNN to White House correspondent Kaitlan Collins, adding, “It went off the rails when he said, ‘let me ask you a question,’ to the vice president.”
“I think [Zelensky] should apologize for wasting our time for a meeting that was going to end the way it did,” Rubio said summarily.
At the conclusion of the fiery meeting, Trump dismissed Zelensky from the White House — canceling both a luncheon and a press conference where the two countries were expected to sign the joint agreement to develop valuable minerals in the eastern European country.
Later in the day, Zelensky told Fox News’ Brett Baier that he was “not sure we did something bad,” in reference to the Oval Office blow-up.
Zelensky also said during the interview that he believes he can mend his relationship with Trump.
