Historic altercation at the White House between Trump and Zelensky

On Friday 28 February, Volodymyr Zelensky travelled to Washington for a meeting with Donald Trump, initially scheduled to sign the famous rare earths agreement. But the meeting quickly turned into a farce, with the Ukrainian president humiliated in front of the world’s cameras. Several experts even spoke of a ‘trap’ set by Trump and his vice-president J.D. Vance. This mind-boggling altercation confirms the US administration’s unprecedented alignment with the Kremlin’s narrative and strategy. Earlier this week, Donald Trump announced a freeze on US aid to Ukraine. The European countries, meeting in London on Sunday 2 March, were able to discuss this major diplomatic shift and reaffirm their support for Zelensky, who has his back to the wall. Although Kiev and Washington said yesterday that they were ready for new discussions, Europe, threatened directly at its borders by Putin’s territorial ambitions, must now consider defending itself without the American ally.

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