THE meeting between US President Donald Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymr Zelenskyy at the White House last week didn’t turn out as pundits expected it to be. Many were shocked as the talks unfolded live before millions of viewers across the globe.
As reported by international news outlets, what started as a cordial meeting turned into a shouting match between the two heads of state who had totally diverging views on the pressing issues and concerns they were meant to discuss -- and resolve.
Zelenskyy flew to the United States a day before to sign a minerals deal between the US and Ukraine, which is essentially a strategic framework aimed at enhancing economic cooperation and supporting Ukraine's reconstruction efforts.
The diplomatic community viewed this as a positive development, as it could be the key in putting an end to the three-year war between Ukraine and Russia, which has claimed hundreds of thousands of lives on both sides and turned huge swaths of Ukraine into rubble.
More importantly, it is expected that the presence of US companies operating in Ukraine would serve as a deterrent for Russia to halt its attacks and avoid a head-on conflict with the US government, which would do everything in its power to protect its people.
The Ukrainian leader, however, being a wartime president, didn’t mince words when he told President Trump that Russian President Vladimir Putin could not at all be trusted in keeping his word, as he has broken ceasefire agreements in the past.
Trump responded by telling Zelenskyy that he had too much hate for Putin, which is among the reasons why the peace negotiations between Ukraine and Russia have not made much progress.
The US President then went on to say that the Ukrainian president “[doesn’t] have the cards” but with US backing, it will “start having the cards” it will need and consequently, be in a stronger position to deal with Putin.
The situation escalated when US Vice President JD Vance told Zelenskyy not too “litigate” Ukraine’s case “in front of American media, while accusing him of not being thankful enough for the support the US has provided Ukraine since the war started.
Zelenskyy denied this, explaining that he and the people of Ukraine have, time and again, expressed their deepest gratitude to the US government for all the support it has provided during the armed conflict.
It is at this point when the meeting took a drastic turn, as Zelenskyy told Trump and Vance "First of all, during the war, everybody has problems, even you. But you have a nice ocean and don't feel [it] now, but you will feel it in the future. God bless, you will not have war."
By saying that “you have a nice ocean,” Zelenskyy meant that the US was surrounded by the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans, which have historically insulated it from direct conflicts with other nations.
But Trump didn’t consider Zelenskyy’s comment as a mere observation between co-equals, as he sternly rebuked the Ukrainian president by saying, “You don’t know that. Don’t tell us what we’re going to feel.”
What happened within the confines of the Oval Office is an example of what occurs when emotions run high and inadvertently derail the main task of concerned parties, and that is, to find a middle ground and eventually, a “win-win” solution for everyone.
Clearly, Trump and Zelenskyy had their own agendas which they wanted to lobby for during the contentious dialogue. Both had the welfare of their nations and people in mind and wanted to get the best deal possible from the exchange.
But there were a lot of factors at play, foremost among which is the re-orientation of how the US views itself and acts vis-à-vis the global stage, which, as Trump has underscored, is geared to “Make America Great Again.”
With the US President’s “MAGA” battle cry, he has started to do what he had promised, and that is, to make America independent from the prevailing international economic order that it has helped to painstakingly build over the years.
There is also a growing sense among observers that the American president is dramatically re-orienting US foreign policy in such a way that America’s allies are now questioning the dependability of their Western ally.
Trump has been known as the “King of Deal” who is using his business acumen to address the myriad socioeconomic challenges being confronted by his country. But many are unsure with the efficacy of the strategies he is currently employing in achieving his grand vision.
North Atlantic Treaty Organization’s (Nato) member-countries have read the writing on the wall. In response, they are now working to find ways on how the body can strengthen its defense capability in light of the looming threat from Russia.
And in a show of force and solidarity, main Nato member-countries, Canada included, called for an emergency meeting wherein they all threw their unequivocal support behind Zelenskyy and the Ukrainian people.
The goals of the meeting were twofold: to demonstrate their full backing for Zelenskyy’s embattled nation, and at the same time, help to repair the strained relationship between US and Ukraine and encourage them to resume their talks on the minerals deal.
This will be a test of Nato’s strength in the face of aggression, and more importantly, its capacity to defend itself and its allies against forces whose goals are to sow fear, animosity and discord among the people.