Volodymyr Zelenskyy made a brief stop in Ireland earlier on his way to the US. Ukraine’s President met Taoiseach Micheál Martin at Shannon Airport at lunchtime.
Zelenskyy is due to meet President Trump in Washington later where he is expected to finalise – and potentially sign – a minerals deal.
The details of the agreement are not yet known, but it is thought that Ukraine will give the US access to a range of minerals to be mined in Ukraine including lithium and titanium.
The expectation of a deal comes despite rocky relations between Trump and Zelenskyy.
Last week, the US President described Zelenskyy as a dictator and blamed Ukraine, rather than Russia, for starting the war.
Taoiseach Micheál Martin cancelled a trip to Belfast today to instead head to Shannon Airport so he could meet Zelenskyy.
The Taoiseach said it was a “warm and substantial” meeting.
“We discussed the most recent developments with regard to the situation in Ukraine ahead of the President’s meeting with President Trump.
“I reiterated Ireland’s steadfast support for Ukraine and its people as they continue to defend themselves against Russia’s ongoing illegal and brutal aggression.
“I reaffirmed Ireland’s readiness to offer practical humanitarian and financial support to Ukraine, both bilaterally and with our EU partners.
“We discussed how, together with the EU, we can advance a just, sustainable and durable peace in Ukraine. This will be a key focus of the discussions among EU leaders at the special meeting of the European Council on 6 March.
“I also took the opportunity to offer my support for the acceleration of Ukraine’s membership of the EU. This will be an important part of broader security guarantees for Ukraine.”
The President of the European Council, António Costa, has invited Zelenskyy to join EU leaders in Brussels for that meeting on 6 March.