GEOFF BENNETT: It has also been a dramatic day for the administration's policy on Ukraine.

President Zelenskyy today expressed regret for how his Oval Office meeting with President Trump melted down on Friday, and he echoed President Trump's language about hoping to end the war and sign an economic deal.

AMNA NAWAZ: But Zelenskyy made that statement after the Trump administration paused all military aid, aid that's helped the country survive Russia's full-scale invasion.

Here's Nick Schifrin with more.

NICK SCHIFRIN: In Kyiv tonight, a mea culpa.

VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY, Ukrainian President (through translator): We can only regret what happened at the White House, instead of our negotiations, but we must find the strength to move forward, to respect one another.

DONALD TRUMP, President of the United States: You're buried there.

Your people are dying.

NICK SCHIFRIN: Since Friday, U.S. officials have been wanting Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to apologize and indicate a willingness to cease fire, which he did for the first time today on X.

He wrote: "The first stages could be the release of prisoners and truce in the sky, a ban on missiles, long-range drones, bombs on energy and other civilian infrastructure, and truce in the sea immediately if Russia will do the same."

Zelenskyy also pledged to sign an economic deal that would pay half of all revenue from Ukraine's critical minerals, including this titanium mine, to an investment fund jointly owned with the U.S.

It would upend decades of U.S. precedent, forcing the invaded, not the invader, to pay up.

But it would also mean the U.S. was invested literally in Ukraine's future, as the two presidents celebrated before Friday's meeting blew up.

DONALD TRUMP: It's a big commitment from the United States, and we appreciate working with you very much.

NICK SCHIFRIN: But the deal does not come with security guarantees, and Ukraine argues only a strong defense can end the fighting long-term.

Since Russia's full-scale invasion, the U.S. has appropriated more than $180 billion to Ukraine, $66 billion in military aid.

Today, the U.S. is responsible for 20 percent of Ukraine's military supplies, perhaps most critically, air defense, including the Patriot missile system.

A senior Ukrainian official argues Ukraine can survive without most American weapons, in part because Ukraine has mastered modern war's most important weapon, drones.

VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY (through translator): This is not 2022 anymore.

Our resilience is stronger now.

We have the means to defend ourselves.

NICK SCHIFRIN: But, still, the U.S. decision has left Ukraine's defenders offended.

ANTON, Ukrainian Soldier (through translator): At first, the U.S. were with us.

Now they don't even want to recognize Russia as an aggressor.

In fact, the U.S. has changed sides.

NICK SCHIFRIN: Echoing that soldier, a senior Ukrainian official told me that, after the White House confirmed the pause of U.S. military assistance last night, Ukraine felt betrayed.

This official said -- quote -- "In the war between Ukraine and Russia, the first surrender was the United States."

But he and other Ukrainian officials I spoke to tonight said they hope President Zelenskyy's message could lead to the economic deal being signed and they expressed gratitude for their cooperation with the Trump administration -- Amna.

AMNA NAWAZ: Thank you, Nick.

For more on this now, we turn to retired Lieutenant General Doug Lute.

He served in both the George W. Bush and Obama administrations on the National Security Council staff and was U.S. ambassador to NATO during the Obama administration.

General Lute, welcome back to the "News Hour."

Always great to see you.

You have heard now the White House says that the freeze on military aid to Ukraine stays in place until President Trump determines Ukraine has demonstrated a commitment to peace negotiations.

What's your reaction to that?

LT. GEN. DOUGLAS LUTE (RET.

), Former U.S.

Ambassador to NATO: Well, I think Nick covered the immediate impacts pretty well in his reporting.

We should remember, first of all, that this is not the only time that aid from the U.S. has been paused or suspended.

Remember, we went through a six-month period last year where there was a cease in aid because of congressional debate and so forth.

The immediate impact will be on high-end air and missile defense systems that protect Ukrainian cities.

And, as Nick reported, the Patriot missile system is probably first and foremost there.

But, also, there's very sensitive intelligence sharing that's been going on, and intelligence gathered from very sensitive collection means, collection sources.

So it would be interesting to see if that sharing also ends.

There are three things that will somewhat moderate or mitigate the impact of this U.S. pause.

First of all, Ukraine has ramped up its own indigenous defense industrial base.

They produced a million drones on their own last year, and drones now dominate the battlefield.

The Europeans can cover some of this gap as the U.S. departs.

And then finally, it very much depends on the battlefield dynamic.

Does the tempo of the war remain the same?

Or is there a hope for a cease-fire, which would mean that the gap is less significant?

AMNA NAWAZ: General Lute, is the U.S. asking enough of Russia in all of this to get them at the negotiating table?

LT. GEN. DOUGLAS LUTE: I think this is one of the curious dimensions of the Trump approach, which seems to be removing leverage from Russia and pressuring Ukraine.

You saw just a couple of weeks ago that the defense secretary announced three no's with regard to leverage on Russia, so no U.S. troops as a part of a cease-fire enforcement arrangement, no return of Ukrainian occupied territory, sovereign territory, and no hope that Ukraine will join NATO.

That's curious, because typically, in the pre-negotiation phase, the sides try to gather leverage, to assemble leverage, rather than sacrifice it.

AMNA NAWAZ: We have also heard these repeated demands from U.S. officials of gratitude, more gratitude from President Zelenskyy.

It came up in the White House meeting.

It's come up since then.

What do you make of that?

Is that a productive tack to take with an ally?

LT. GEN. DOUGLAS LUTE: Well, perhaps it would be if it were true, but it's simply not true.

I mean, I don't know of a single public engagement with Americans or with European allies or with the United Nations where President Zelenskyy has not started with making the point, begun his engagement with gratitude and thanks.

So I just don't think it's accurate.

AMNA NAWAZ: President Zelenskyy seems to want in these talks security guarantees up front first, and then to talk about negotiations and a cease-fire.

But President Trump and his team want to talk about the cease-fire first.

For a war that's now in its third year, what's wrong with that approach?

LT. GEN. DOUGLAS LUTE: Well, President Trump has said security is the easy part.

Getting to the negotiations -- he implies, getting to the negotiations is the hard part, which he's working on now.

That's simply not Zelenskyy -- Zelenskyy's and the Ukrainians' experience over the last 11 years.

They have 11 years of experience of numerous signed agreements between Ukraine and Russia, which have repeatedly been violated, and yet their country has no security.

So it's quite, I think, understandable that Zelenskyy requires something more, something more credible to guarantee his security before he launches into cease-fires.

AMNA NAWAZ: In the minute or so we have left, do you see this moving into negotiations?

And, if so, who has the leverage going in?

LT. GEN. DOUGLAS LUTE: Well, leverage is a big thing now.

And as we have already discussed, I think we have unnecessarily sacrificed some of our leverage up front.

I found Zelenskyy's statement today as very interesting.

He offered some good ideas of what would in typical terms be called confidence-building measures, so the exchange of prisoners, a cease-fire of long-range strikes on both sides, a cease-fire at sea.

So if these sorts of introductory measures, beginning measures, can be set in place, then maybe we can build some momentum towards talks.

AMNA NAWAZ: Retired Lieutenant General Doug Lute.

General Lute, thank you for your time.

Always good to speak with you.