President Trump has now held two “love-bombing” summits on Ukraine, full of flattery and saccharine diplomacy. The first one in Alaska was a love-in with President Putin, which was extremely alarming. The second one, at the White House, was a love-in with President Zelensky and his seven European human shields, which was much more reassuring.
But these were just the opening episodes in the made-for-TV drama, Donald Trump: World Peacemaker. If all goes to plan – still far from certain – the third show will feature a bilateral meeting between Volodymyr Zelensky and Vladimir Putin at an undetermined location, and the fourth will be a trilateral summit with Trump. This will be the “room where it happens” and a settlement to the war is achieved.
The series finale, of course, will be the Nobel Peace Prize ceremony, where Trump graciously accepts the thanks of a grateful world.
Trump was all smiles and bonhomie as he welcomed Zelensky to the White House, patting him on the back and clasping him by the neck with a proprietorial air as if the Ukrainian leader was a favourite pet.
“I love the Ukrainian people, but I love all people. I love the Russian people. I love them all. I want to get the war stopped,” Trump beamed. He was playing not just the father of the American nation, but the father of all nations – one who can be stern and tough on his children, but ultimately is the President of Love.
European leaders including Sir Keir Starmer, were more than willing to humour Trump in this role. The effusive compliments and thank-you’s came thick and fast – Starmer opened his speech that way – and Zelensky, in his best, black “combat” suit, looked thrilled, or pretended to be, by the outcome of his own sit-down with the President after receiving the hair-dryer treatment in February.
“We had a very good conversation with President Trump, and it really was the best one,” Zelensky smiled, “ – or, sorry, maybe the best one will be in the future.”
With a thoughtful touch, the Ukrainian leader handed Trump a letter – “not to you, to your wife” – from his wife, Olena. In it she graciously thanked Melania for her letter to Putin imploring him to protect the “innocence” of children suffering from war. It was just the sort of thing the President of Love in his gilded palace would appreciate.
The Oval Office never looked more bling, but the test for Ukraine and its allies is whether the golden glow from this summit can be sustained. The phalanx of top European leaders – Emmanuel Macron of France, Chancellor Merz of Germany, EU leader Ursula von der Leyen and others – played a strictly limited supporting role at the White House gathering.
All those bigwigs were there for three reasons: to serve as Zelensky’s honour guard, to press Trump to join them in providing “article five” Nato-style security guarantees for Ukraine (helpfully put in air quotes by Georgia Meloni, the Italian prime minister) and to argue for a ceasefire so Russia can’t keep nibbling away at more of Ukraine.
But it soon became clear that they weren’t there to discuss the shape of any future territorial settlement or “land swap” between Russia and Ukraine. The fate of the Donbas region and the border between the two warring nations remains tbd: to be discussed.
This was putting the cart before the horse. Because unless Putin and Zelensky can agree a deal on what constitutes Ukraine’s eastern border with Russia – does it start at the Donbas, or can Ukraine hang on to its “fortress belt” of cities like Sloviansk, Krematorsk and Kostiantynivka? – peace talks could very well collapse.
If this happens, “Article 5-style” guarantees to protect Ukraine – even with US support – simply won’t apply. More likely, this is the stage at which the critical choice to aid or betray Ukraine will need to be made.
Will Trump turn on his friend “Vladimir”, impose harsh sanctions and ramp up arms shipments to Ukraine? Or, more likely – and far more worryingly – will he start bullying Zelensky again and tell him to hand over all of the Donbas in the interests of “peace”?
If there is one thing Putin and Trump agree on, it’s that it is up to Zelensky to make peace rather than the obvious aggressor. But Trump said something interesting at the summit. He claimed Putin “wanted to make a deal for me”.
With Trump, it’s all about Me, Me, Me. He needs to understand there will be no Nobel if he gives away the Donbas to Russia. If Putin wants to gratify Trump the Peacemaker, he can’t keep pushing his luck.
Sarah Baxter is Director of the Marie Colvin Center for International Reporting
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