WASHINGTON DC – President Volodymyr Zelensky landed at Stansted Airport on Saturday seeking some European calm and fortitude after the American storm and betrayal.
Friday’s drubbing at the hands of President Donald Trump and Vice President JD Vance provided the world with its clearest indication yet that the new American government is eviscerating its partnership with Kyiv, to the point where a made-for-TV mugging of the country’s leader was the order of the day.
Watching the video playback of Friday’s disaster in the Oval Office, one Washington wag wondered whether Trump was going to go full Jerry Springer: “President Zelensky, you say you don’t like Vladimir Putin… well guess what? He’s right here. Let’s bring him out and see if we can settle this right now!”
Matters did not, of course, descend quite to that level. But the willingness of Trump to hold Zelensky down while Vance shivved him suggested a degree of premeditation that may even have predated Sir Keir Starmer’s charm offensive in the Oval Office a mere 24 hours earlier.
Some observers in Washington see Trump’s treatment of Zelensky as a broader allegory for the Ukraine crisis itself. This week, French President Emmanuel Macron, Sir Keir Starmer, and Zelensky himself have all failed to persuade the American president that Russia, not Ukraine, started the war, and that Putin must pay the price for his aggression.
Now, the White House and its sycophantic supporters insist it was Zelensky, not Trump, who started the pile-on in the Oval Office. Senator Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, claimed he had “never been more proud” of Trump and Vance, even suggesting the Ukrainian leader should consider resigning.
As signatures piled up in support of an online petition demanding that Starmer should rescind the King’s offer of Trump’s repeat state visit to the UK, some pro-Ukraine voices in the US are urging caution.
One former top US government official said that the royal invitation is “the only card” that Starmer has left to play with Trump, and should be held in reserve for later use.
In the event that Trump threatens the UK with tariffs, for example, withdrawal of the royal invitation – so credulously accepted by Trump – could prove a useful weapon.
As Starmer prepares for Sunday’s all-important crisis talks with Zelensky and European leaders, the former top official said that the meeting should focus on the strength of Europe’s current position, rather than any collective perception of weakness or disunity.
Macron is already indicating a willingness to offer the protection of France’s nuclear umbrella to his country’s neighbours.
Starmer may choose to throw the UK’s nuclear deterrent into the hopper: a cross-Channel alliance that could be presented to Washington as fresh evidence that Europe has heard Trump’s entreaties to take greater responsibility for its own security (and is now also recognising that Trump is no longer a trusted ally).
The think tank operated by former President George W Bush is proposing that Europe should seize $300 billion in frozen and sanctioned Russian assets in order to finance the urgent actions now required.
“The block’s leadership is now more critical than ever”, wrote Albert Torres of the George W. Bush Institute, adding “the assets remain the best leverage the Europeans have”.
Other analysts argue that European leaders may not even recognise the potential strength and utility of existing pacts and agreements.
Many countries already enjoy bilateral agreements with Ukraine that can serve as conduits for additional support and military assistance.
The Joint Expeditionary Force, headquartered in Northwood, north west London, fuses the UK’s military with the forces of nine other Nato members.
Only last summer, it was engaged in protective air and maritime operations to secure critical undersea infrastructure across northern Europe.
The Combined Joint Expeditionary Force already draws upon the UK and French militaries and was created specifically to boost short-notice readiness for the kind of crisis that Trump has now ignited.
The Netherlands and Germany each enjoy long-term agreements with Kyiv to provide military support and training, adding to the tapestry of existing arrangements that can quickly be utilised to support Ukraine, and boost any back-sliding in America’s commitment to Nato.
Ukraine’s supporters in Washington are expressing untrammeled fury towards Trump and Vance for the brutality of their authoritarian attack on Zelensky.
But now, they argue, the ball is firmly in Europe’s court, and the Prime Minister and his colleagues must prepare for a new dawn in which Trump is neither on Ukraine’s side, nor theirs.
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