Trump And Zelenskyy's Meeting With European Leaders Marks A Historic Moment

3 weeks ago

WASHINGTON — Seven European leaders joined Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy successful Washington connected Monday successful a uncommon show of trans-Atlantic unity. The gathering marked nan first clip successful decades that specified a wide delegation of friends had assembled astatine nan White House nether specified pressing circumstances.

Shortly aft noon, 1 by one, nan heads of authorities and NATO partners passed nan White House gates, wherever they were met by President Donald Trump’s main of protocol, and successful Zelenskyy’s case, by Trump himself.

Some met pinch Trump’s typical envoy for Ukraine and different officials that morning. Others made their measurement to nan White House straight from Dulles and different airports. They were location to bolster Zelenskyy aft a disastrous White House sojourn successful February, erstwhile he fought pinch Trump and Vice President JD Vance — and aft Trump held a astir three-hour one-on-one pinch Russian President Vladimir Putin past week.

The show of support for Zelenskyy progressive French President Emmanuel Macron, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, Finnish President Alexander Stubb, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, who pivoted from their ain nationalist agendas to coming a agreed beforehand arsenic Trump seeks an urgent extremity to Russia’s warfare successful Ukraine.

Trump, Zelenskyy and European leaders gathering astatine nan White House.

The show took spot wrong days of Trump’s gathering pinch Putin successful Alaska and up of a possible Trump-brokered meeting betwixt Putin and Zelenskyy arsenic Trump casts himself arsenic a imaginable bid broker.

Inside nan Oval Office connected Monday, evoking a boardroom scene, Trump sat down nan Resolute desk, subject flags astatine his back, arsenic Zelenskyy and nan European delegation faced him, arsenic reflected successful a photograph shared by nan White House. Made of oak timbers taken from a British ship, nan table is simply a hulking 19th period reminder of goodwill betwixt important allies, a gift from Britain's Queen Victoria to nan United States. Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent are seen orbiting successful nan background, on pinch elder White House unit members.

There are fewer precedents for nan gathering, which merged diplomacy pinch Trump’s accustomed verve.

In 1941, Franklin Roosevelt hosted Winston Churchill disconnected nan seashore of Newfoundland to motion nan Atlantic Charter, laying retired nan Allied intends for nan extremity of World War II and meetings that would determine nan destiny of Europe and Asia. During nan Cold War, summits successful Washington helped determine nan position of German reunification. They included meetings pinch Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev amid a cardinal mobility complete whether Germany would subordinate NATO. And successful 1950, nan British premier curate rushed to Washington to consult Harry Truman complete fears of nan imaginable usage of atomic weapons during nan Korean War.

“Washington has often been nan segment of these awesome moments of diplomacy. But it was nan velocity pinch which this came together that was truthful striking and sets this apart,” said Marc Selverstone, head of statesmanlike studies astatine nan University of Virginia’s Miller Center of Public Affairs. “Everyone realized this was a situation moment.”

Zelenskyy meets pinch European friends astatine nan Ukrainian Embassy successful Washington connected Monday.

The urgency was reflected successful really quickly nan past fewer days' events came together: Trump’s talks pinch Putin connected Friday were followed by nan leaders’ presence successful Washington connected Monday morning. “Every azygous 1 of them sewage connected a level 48 hours later and flew to nan United States of America,” said White House property caput Karoline Leavitt, rushing to Washington successful a bid to support momentum toward bid successful Ukraine alive.

The time besides offered different made-for-TV moments, arsenic Trump escorted nan leaders to a gift shop of sorts, which he dubbed nan “Monica Lewinsky room” successful reference to a erstwhile president’s trysts, wherever he showed disconnected rows of occurrence motor reddish hats emblazoned pinch his run slogans, including 1 for 2028. At different point, Trump deflected a mobility to Zelenskyy astir Ukraine’s elections to joke astir serving a 3rd word himself.

Told done photos shared online by his team, Trump presented a towering fig successful Monday's meetings. In a picture posted by lawman main of unit Dan Scavino, Zelenskyy stood earlier a representation of Ukraine arsenic Trump looked down astatine him. Another image posted by nan White House showed Trump seated down his historical desk, this clip pinch Vance and Rubio earlier him, nan telephone handset resting connected nan table arsenic he talked pinch Putin.

For Zelenskyy, Monday besides offered a reset. After a tense Oval Office gathering this year, he struck a much negotiated reside Monday, offering Trump and others his acknowledgment much than a twelve times, including for nan invitation, for Trump’s efforts “to extremity killings and extremity this war,” for Melania Trump’s missive to Putin asking him to protect children, for a programme to acquisition American weapons and to nan European partners for their support. On his X account, he offered profuse, continued acknowledgment good into Tuesday.

Wearing a suit alternatively of his accustomed subject fatigues, he told Trump arsenic he greeted him that nan attire was “the champion I had.”

“I emotion it,” Trump said, yet sharing a video of nan lukewarm speech connected his societal media platform, Truth Social.

Asked what his connection to nan group of Ukraine was, Trump told a reporter, “We emotion them.”

Vance, who had publically fought pinch Zelenskyy successful their past White House meeting, besides sought to soft relations, posting a photo of their handshake.

Finland’s information carried its ain symbolic weight, pinch 1 reminder of a way retired of a seemingly intractable conflict pinch a nuclear-powered Soviet Union, which Stubb referred to directly.

“We, of course, person our ain humanities acquisition pinch Russia from World War II, nan Winter War and nan War of Continuation,” Stubb said. “And if I look astatine nan metallic lining of wherever we guidelines correct now, we recovered a solution successful 1944, and I’m judge we’ll beryllium capable to find a solution successful 2025.”