Hot Mic Picks Up Trump–Meloni White House Exchange: ‘Zelenskyy Is Fine for Me…’

Hot Mic Catches Trump and Meloni Banter, Reveals Trump’s Putin Remark at White House Summit.

A White House summit on the Russia-Ukraine conflict on August 18 produced more than diplomatic discussions after a hot mic captured candid exchanges among world leaders. Ahead of the meeting, US President Donald Trump and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni were overheard joking about German Chancellor Friedrich Merz’s height. Meloni quipped, “I don’t want to stand with him, Volodymyr Zelenskyy is fine for me,” drawing laughs online once the clip circulated.

More striking was Trump’s aside to French President Emmanuel Macron, in which he claimed Russian President Vladimir Putin “wants to make a deal for me… as crazy as it sounds.” He suggested he could personally call Putin to arrange a trilateral meeting. The offhand remarks, unintended for the public, have sparked debate over Trump’s diplomatic approach and his assertion of unique influence over Moscow.