Trump–Zelenskyy rematch: Europe backs Kyiv's gamble in high-stakes White House test

New Delhi,UPDATED: Aug 18, 2025 10:38 IST

The last time Volodymyr Zelenskyy set foot in the Oval Office, the visit ended in humiliation. Berated by his American hosts, denied a luncheon, and brusquely shown the door, the Ukrainian president was told by Donald Trump he could "come back when he is ready for peace". The encounter left Washington-Kyiv ties in absolute tatters.

Six months on, Zelenskyy returns to the White House under very different circumstances. Flanked by a phalanx of European leaders, he arrives not only to learn what emerged from Trump's recent Alaska summit with Vladimir Putin, but also to plead Ukraine's case in a forum unlike any other in recent memory. For the Ukrainian leader, it is a second chance - one fraught with peril, but also possibility.

This is no routine summit. It is a test of balance, of language, and of restraint. Zelenskyy must argue Ukraine's case without provoking Trump, who has made clear his conditions for "peace" may come at Kyiv's expense. Both sides know they cannot afford another collapse.

A CHANGED LANDSCAPE AFTER ALASKA

Trump's Anchorage summit with Putin was billed as a turning point. Instead of pressing for an immediate ceasefire, the US president pivoted toward what he called a "direct peace agreement", signalling openness to territorial concessions.

He even told European officials that Putin still demanded the entire eastern Donbas region - a proposal Ukraine insists is constitutionally impossible. Equally striking were Trump's public conditions.

Hours before Zelenskyy's arrival, he ruled out any hope of Kyiv reclaiming Crimea, annexed by Russia in 2014, and warned there would be "no going into NATO by Ukraine" as part of any deal.

For European leaders, who were briefed on the summit's contents, this raised alarms that Trump was moving closer to Putin's terms. Even as Trump's envoy Steve Witkoff suggested Moscow might accept NATO-style security guarantees for Kyiv - calling the idea "game-changing" - Washington's language has left allies anxious.

ZELENSKYY'S TIGHTROPE

For Zelenskyy, the stakes could hardly be higher. Trump once accused him of "gambling with World War III" and Vice President JD Vance scolded him for lacking gratitude: "Have you said thank you once?"

Now, coached by European leaders on the art of deal-making, Ukraine's president must tread carefully. French President Emmanuel Macron, UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer and others have advised him to temper confrontation with overt appreciation, stressing that Trump responds to gestures of deference.

Zelenskyy himself struck a different tone this weekend, writing on X: "I am grateful for the invitation" to Washington, promising to discuss "all the details regarding ending the killing and the war". For Kyiv, the goal is to avoid taking the bait - not to be boxed into premature concessions, but also not to provoke Trump into walking away again.

The presence of so many European leaders at the White House on Monday is without modern precedent. German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, Finnish President Alexander Stubb, and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen will join Macron, Starmer and others in what amounts to a wartime convoy of solidarity.

This extraordinary show of support is designed to both embolden Zelenskyy and insulate him from another Oval Office humiliation. "The President invited them to come," Secretary of State Marco Rubio said, dismissing fears Zelenskyy would be bullied into a deal as a "stupid media narrative".

But the subtext is clear: Europe does not trust that the Trump-Putin channel will safeguard Ukrainian interests, and it wants to make sure it has a voice in any settlement.

TRUMP-ZELENSKYY 2.0

For Kyiv, history looms large. From the Budapest Memorandum of 1994 to the 1997 Treaty of Friendship, every agreement with Moscow has collapsed. Ceasefires have been signed, only to be broken within hours. The idea of territorial "swaps" or "concessions", currently circulating in Washington, is seen in Ukraine as rewarding aggression.

That moral weight is compounded by optics. Putin's red-carpet reception in Alaska - complete with Trump clapping as the Russian leader joined him in his armoured limousine - was applauded in Moscow but viewed with unease across Europe, where hundreds of thousands of deaths and countless atrocities are reminders of the costs of Russia's war.

With Europe watching, Monday's meeting is an opportunity for Trump to present himself as a dealmaker who can resolve the war he once claimed he could end in a single day.

For Zelenskyy, it is a test of restraint, diplomacy, and persuasion - knowing the Oval Office can turn hostile in a heartbeat. With European leaders by his side, the Ukrainian president will try to show Trump that a peace built on Putin's terms risks more instability, not less. For now, the gamble lies in whether Zelenskyy can play Trump's game - and still protect Ukraine's.

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