Jamie Dettmer
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy veered dangerously off-script last week, thanks, in large part, to goading by U.S. Vice President JD Vance.
In doing so, the Ukrainian leader left the White House empty-handed and U.S.-Ukrainian relations in tatters — much to the delight of MAGA loyalists, like former strategic adviser Steve Bannon, who told POLITICO it was the “perfect outcome, and now we can wash our hands of him.” Ukrainians, though, were aghast at the spectacle, and remain deeply upset by what they see as Trump and Vance’s failure to understand that they are the wronged party who have suffered egregiously at the hands of a revanchist Russia, even enduring documented war crimes.
Counseled by his American friends and advisers, as well as his powerful chief of staff Andriy Yermak, Zelenskyy had been careful to avoid antagonizing America’s prickly President Donald Trump since his reelection. “Play along” was the advice, and considering the bad blood between Trump and Zelenskyy going back to 2019 — when the Ukrainian leader wouldn’t accede to Trump’s demand for an investigation into former U.S. President Joe Biden’s son — following that advice was crucial.
Until Friday, the strategy was clear: The Ukrainian leader needed to be seen as constructive, leaving Russian President Vladimir Putin to exasperate Trump by being recalcitrant and the first one to say “nyet.”
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