US President Donald Trump’s claim that Washington, D.C., was “the most unsafe place anywhere” before his return to power reportedly left Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky stunned.
During a meeting in the Oval Office just days after his encounter with Vladimir Putin in Alaska, Trump said, “We went from the most unsafe place anywhere to a place that now people, friends are calling me up, Democrats are calling me up and they’re saying, ‘Sir, I want to thank you. My wife and I went out to dinner last night for the first time in four years, and Washington, DC is safe.'”
As Trump spoke, Zelensky appeared visibly surprised. The Ukrainian leader reacted when Trump recounted a story about a friend’s son, a professional golfer, who felt safe dining out in Washington—a situation Trump suggested had been impossible for years.
Trump credited himself for the change, saying, “I had another friend of mine, he has a son who’s a great golfer. He is on tour and he came in fourth yesterday in the big tournament where Scotty Scheffler made the great shot and he said his son is going to dinner in Washington DC tonight.”
The 79-year-old continued: “His friend’s son asked his father if he would have allowed that to happen a year ago. He said no way.” According to Trump, the friend added, “What you’ve done is incredible, and I think the people realized it.”
He also criticized the media for its portrayal of him, stating, “No, all I want is security for our people but people that haven’t gone out to dinner in Washington, DC in two years are going to dinner and the restaurant last two days were busier than they’ve been in a long time.”
As part of his efforts to tackle crime, Trump visited Washington, D.C., on Thursday, emphasizing that troops and police would remain in the city for the time being. “We’re going to make it safe, and we’re going to then go on to other places, but we’re going to stay here for a while. We want to make this absolutely perfect,” he said.
Earlier, Trump mentioned that he was working to arrange a meeting between the Presidents of Ukraine and Russia in an attempt to end the ongoing conflict.
Trump said he spoke with Putin over the phone following a “very good” meeting with European leaders and President Zelensky at the White House.
“At the conclusion of the meetings, I called President Putin, and began the arrangements for a meeting, at a location to be determined, between President Putin and President Zelensky,” Trump stated on his Truth Social platform.
