In an interview with Fox News, Zelensky declined to apologize, stating, "I don't believe we did anything wrong."

The President of Ukraine appeared in a Fox News studio just hours after a dispute with Donald Trump and JD Vance at the White House. Fox News's main political host, Bret Baier, began the interview by asking if he wanted to apologize to the U.S. president.

Zelensky did not answer either "yes" or "no," noting that he is grateful to the American people.

"Of course, I am thankful to the president, and, of course, to Congress, but first and foremost to your people. Your people helped save our nation; we really wanted to have these strong relationships, and where it is needed, we will have them," Zelensky said.

The Ukrainian president stated that he was "not sure we did anything wrong," when asked about the dispute, but acknowledged that the atmosphere was "bad for both sides."

"I just want to be honest, and I want our partners to understand the situation correctly, and I want to understand everything correctly. It's about not losing our friendship," he said later.

"No one wants to end the war more than we do. I'm just saying we need to be on the same side to stop Putin," he added.

He quoted President Ronald Reagan, stating that peace is not merely the absence of war. When the host pressed him again about apologizing to Trump, Zelensky responded negatively.

"I respect the president and the American people; I think we need to be open and honest. I’m not sure we did anything wrong; some things, with all due respect to the media, we need to discuss without them," the Ukrainian president said.

Fox News: "Do you want to continue the war, or do you want peace? And if there was an opportunity to return to the White House – would you go?"

Zelensky: "First of all, yes, I want peace. The agreement on rare earth metals is the first step towards peace and security guarantees. We have a tough situation; you saw it, Bret. But I respect the military. I can't say 'stop' because no one will stop; we want a fair and lasting peace. Fine, not NATO; let's build NATO in Ukraine."

According to Zelensky, the agreement was meant to be the first step towards establishing other agreements regarding Ukraine's security guarantees.

"The agreement on rare earth minerals did not have provisions for security guarantees," the Fox News host stated.

"But that's part of the security guarantees!" Zelensky emphasized.

He mentioned that the signing of the agreement depends on the decision of the American side.

"This agreement was prepared by teams. It wasn't easy for several weeks, and now it’s ready. I think they should sign it. Countries need to sign it; ministers need to sign it. And that's it. I don't know when they will do it. It depends on the American side," the President of Ukraine noted.

"I understand that the U.S. wanted this agreement. And we were not against this agreement. But we wanted to understand what exactly would be guaranteed in this agreement in terms of security and what the next steps would be. Once again – for our people. During the war, many terrible things have happened, and we don’t want surprises," he said.

"Mr. President, do you believe that your relationship with Donald Trump – President Trump – can be salvaged after today?" Baier asked Zelensky.

"Yes, of course, because this relationship is more than just between two presidents. It’s a historical relationship, a strong connection between our peoples, and that’s why I always start by thanking your people on behalf of our nation," Zelensky replied.

Background. Following the dispute that occurred between Zelensky, Trump, and Vice President JD Vance during press statements, the Ukrainian delegation left the White House prematurely, and Ukraine and the U.S. did not sign a framework agreement on minerals.