Susan Rice criticizes Trump meeting, sides with Ukraine leader

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Former Obama National Security Advisor Susan Rice made an appearance on MSNBC to discuss the recent contentious meeting between Ukrainian President Zelensky, President Donald Trump, and Vice President JD Vance.

During her interview with Nicole Wallace, Rice demonstrated clear alignment with Zelensky’s position while expressing opposition to an agreement that would benefit American interests.

In a telling moment, Rice began by informally referring to the Ukrainian leader as “Vladimir” before quickly correcting herself to use his proper name.

BREAKING: Hungary Prime Minister Viktor Orban releases a statement after President Trump’s meeting with Zelensky.

“Strong men make peace, weak men make war. Today President Trump stood bravely for peace. Even if it was difficult for many to digest. Thank you, Mr. President!” pic.twitter.com/WDM6JZl9rf

— Ian Jaeger (@IanJaeger29) February 28, 2025

“Vladimir, I mean, excuse me, Vladimir Zelensky was compelled to agree to a horrible deal that would have sent Ukraine’s minerals to the United States without any concrete security guarantees,” Rice stated during the interview.

She continued, “And yet, because he was trying to improve a relationship with Donald Trump, he came to Washington, he came to the Oval Office, and sat down for a meeting, hat in hand. And soon after he got there, the Vice President of the United States lit into him and started a confrontation.”

Rice drew from her past experience in countless Oval Office meetings with heads of state, presidents and vice presidents, as National Security Advisor, as UN ambassador, and in other roles. I can tell you that the vice President or the Secretary of State or anybody else, they don’t jump in, hijack a conversation without the express blessing of the President of the United States.”

She further alleged, “So JD Vance did that deliberately. Donald Trump knew what he was going to do. And I think, as he said at the end, because he can’t help himself, this was a setup for the cameras. It was a play to his base, but above all, it was a play to Vladimir Putin, to show fealty to Vladimir Putin, and to try to humiliate Zelensky.”

This Was What Zelensky Did Behind The Scenes That Led to The Heated White House Exchange. https://t.co/LMvJLAc2vy pic.twitter.com/Xd3PK78tg6

— The Red Archives (@the_redarchives) March 1, 2025

Despite Zelensky’s own conduct during the meeting drawing criticism, Rice offered effusive praise for the Ukrainian leader: “But Zelensky didn’t play along with the script because Zelensky’s got dignity and guts, and Zelensky has people that he democratically represents. As a result, he couldn’t sit there in silence as lies were being told about how the war was started, whose responsibility it was, et cetera, et cetera.”

The nature of Rice’s comments raises questions about whether she and other former Obama administration officials might be providing guidance to foreign leaders in opposition to President Trump.