US President Donald Trump and his Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelensky have entered a war of words after the US leader initiated talks with Russia about ending the conflict, but did not include Ukraine.

After Zelensky said Trump was in a “disinformation space”, Trump called Zelensky a “dictator” – a remark condemned by Kyiv’s allies.

The two have traded barbs in the past, but Zelensky has usually tried to toe a diplomatic line with Trump.

Here is a look back at what the two have said to, and about, one another, and how their public relationship has developed over the years.

21 April 2019: On the day Zelensky is elected president of Ukraine, Trump, still in his first term, calls Zelensky to congratulate him. Trump says it was an “incredible election” and adds that “you will do a great job”.

2019: Allies of Trump begin stoking allegations that Joe Biden, then Democratic frontrunner for president, lobbied Ukraine to dismiss its top prosecutor to stymie an investigation into energy firm Burisma, of which his son, Hunter, sat on the board. The allegations were later found to be fabricated, and the prosecutor was removed from office for corruption.

25 July 2019: In a phone conversation that would become the basis for Trump’s first impeachment, Trump asks Zelensky to “get to the bottom” of the allegations. Zelensky says the evidence would reviewed later that year.

29 September 2020: In the first presidential debate between Trump and Biden, Trump alludes to the allegations, saying: “Once you became vice-president, [Hunter] made a fortune in Ukraine and China and Moscow and various other places.”

24 February 2022: Russia begins its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, which Trump describes as “appalling”. He adds that Zelensky is “brave” for remaining in Kyiv, and claims the invasion “would never have happened” if he had been elected in 2020.

5 March 2023: “Before I even arrive at the Oval Office, I will have the disastrous war between Russia and Ukraine settled,” Trump tells a conservative conference. “And it will take me no longer than one day.”

May 2024: Zelensky’s term expires but he remains in office, as scheduled elections in Ukraine do not go ahead because the nation remains under martial law. He previously said that “now is not the time for elections”.

22 September 2024: Zelensky tells the New Yorker magazine: “My feeling is that Trump doesn’t really know how to stop the war, even if he might think he knows how.” He adds that “many” leaders have thought they could, but have been unable to.

25 September 2024: On the campaign trail, Trump accuses Zelensky of “making little nasty aspersions toward your favourite president, me”, adding: “Any deal, even the worst deal, would have been better than what we have right now.”

27 September 2024: Zelensky and Trump meet in New York. Zelensky says they have a “common view that the war has to be stopped and [Russian President Vladimir] Putin can’t win”, while Trump says he will resolve the war “very quickly”.

6 November 2024: Trump is re-elected US president. Zelensky is among the first world leaders to call to congratulate him, writing shortly after that he looked forward to a “strong” US under Trump’s “decisive leadership”.

22 January 2025: “It’s time to MAKE A DEAL,” Trump writes on Truth Social. “We can do it the easy way or the hard way.” He adds that without a deal, he will be forced to place further economic restrictions on Russia.

23 January 2025: Trump tells the World Economic Forum that Zelensky “wants to make a deal” but Putin “might not”.

15 February 2025: Zelensky writes that he has begun working with Trump’s team, adding: “The world is looking up to America as the power that has the ability to not only stop the war but also help ensure the reliability of peace afterward.”

18 February 2025: US-Russia talks about ending the war begin in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Zelensky tells reporters that the talks took place “behind Ukraine’s back”, adding: “Once again, decisions about Ukraine are being made without Ukraine.”

18 February 2025: After the talks, Trump says he was “disappointed” by Ukraine’s reaction and appeared to blame Ukraine for starting the war, adding that the country “could have made a deal” earlier.

19 February 2025: Zelensky says the US president is caught in a Russian “disinformation space”. He adds: “We are standing strong on our own two feet. I am counting on… the unity of Europe and the pragmatism of America.”

19 February 2025: Trump accuses Zelensky of talking the US into spending $350bn (£277bn), and of claiming that half of that money was now missing. Trump calls Zelensky a “dictator” who has “done a terrible job”.