India, March 2 -- US senator Lindsay Graham had sent a warning to Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky just hours before his spat with President Donald Trump on Friday.

Graham, a Republican from South Carolina, had cautioned Zelensky against getting into an argument during the meeting.

"Don't take the bait. I said, don't get into arguments about security agreements," Graham told the New York Times in an interview.

Graham had initially positioned himself as a mediator, but later called for Zelenskyy to "resign and send somebody over that we can do business with, or change." Other Republican leaders also took two ways, either downplaying the confrontation or blaming Zelensky for not showing respect to Donald Trump.

Volodymyr Zelensky ...