Monday’s talks in the White House went as well as could be expected by the Ukrainians – and put new pressure on the Kremlin
President Donald Trump meets with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky at the White House to discuss the ongoing conflict and U.S. support Credit: Shutterstock Editorial
19 August 2025 12:24am BST
The last time Volodymyr Zelensky set foot in the Oval Office must have been one of the worst days of his life. The disgraceful barracking, the finger-pointing, the insults over his clothing; all left him deeply humiliated.
This time round, however, he had time to prepare. And although the overall picture remains bleak for Ukraine, Zelensky and his allies marshalled some impressive savoir faireand appeared to reclaim ground with Donald Trump that had once appeared to be lost forever.
First there was the question of Zelensky’s clothing. (A petty place to begin, but that is where Trump has forced us.)
Last time, Zelensky’s outfit riled American tempers. On this occasion, however, he managed to both preserve his integrity and make a gesture of respect by donning a black field jacket, as he did for the funeral of Pope Francis in April.
Trump was flattered and clearly loved it. What’s more, when the same reporter who had attacked him so brutally complimented his new attire, Zelensky handled it well.“You are in the same suit,” he remarked with a disarming smile. “I changed. You don’t.” Laughter all round; the reporter didn’t seem to feel the knife going in, but to everyone else the message was clear.
This was the modus operandi employed by Zelensky and the Europeans: give Trump the obeisance and flattery he needed, while manoeuvring their pieces into a position that put pressure on their enemies.
Consider another piece of theatre, the delivery of a letter from Zelensky’s wife to the First Lady. This was a nod to the way in which Melania had written to Putin calling for the protection of children.
“It’s not to you – to your wife,” the Ukrainian leader said as he handed it to Trump, who accepted it warmly.
In both conception and choreography, this was perfect: leveraging a gesture of support from the United States in a way that was highly personal to the President. Psychologically, it was evidently designed to bring Trump onside.
It seemed to work. Again, the bigger picture is not ideal for Ukraine. But by comparison to the bewildering Alaska summit, the European alliance made important strategic gains.
Crucially, Zelensky seemed to persuade the President that he is genuinely interested in peace, not the blocker for which Trump unfairly took him last time.
This paved the way to perhaps the most significant breakthrough yet: Trump’s refusal to rule out putting American boots on the ground as part of a security guarantee. “They [Europe] are the first line of defence because they’re there … but we’re going to help them out also. We’ll be involved,” he said.
This statement would have been unimaginable from the very beginning of the second Trump term. Yet there it was. A great achievement of European diplomacy.
That was not all. In a late night post on Truth Social, Trump confirmed that he had begun arrangements for a meeting between Zelensky and Putin.
This was another win for the good guys. A meeting would entail Putin tacitly accepting Zelensky’s position as a legitimate head of state, something that would stick in the Russian’s craw.
Put all this together and what do you get? If Alaska was a shameful display of friendliness towards the blood-soaked tyrant of the Kremlin, Monday could be chalked up as a quiet diplomatic win for Ukraine.
For the first time in recent weeks, Putin may be the one under pressure. If he responds to these intrusions into his dominance by torpedoing a deal or any future talks, he could make himself the party to blame.
That may draw some retaliation from the White House, which is desperate to end the war. Would sanctions ensue? Maybe. Either way, Trump’s sympathies may be won back from the dark side of the force, placing Ukraine in a position to further press the advantage.
It would be foolish to predict what will happen next. But we must take comfort where we can: through Ukrainian eyes, the board is looking a little less hopeless than it did last week. It’s amazing what a field jacket, a personal letter and a silver tongue can do.
Jake Simons usually writes about Israel and the Jewish world.
It is interesting that he has decided to involve himself with Ukraine at this point.
This is one of those kind of articles that just doesn’t sound right. Sure the media and some politicians see the this as hopeful, I see this as just the beginning of another BS negotiations. Ukraine only wins when Russia is destroyed or a regime change happens. How people can believe Putin on anything is amazingly stupid.
I share your point of view, Cap. These talks were a waste of time.