European leaders jumped to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky’s defense after his contentious meeting with President Trump in Washington that started with a warm tone but derailed swiftly.
The heads of Spain, Portugal, Norway, the Czech Republic, the Netherlands, Germany and other top diplomats stood behind Zelensky shortly after his huddle with Trump and Vice President Vance went off the rails, with both the scheduled joint press conference and signing of a key minerals deal being canceled afterward.
“Your dignity honors the bravery of the Ukrainian people. Be strong, be brave, be fearless,” President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen said on Friday.
“You are never alone, dear President @ZelenskyyUa. We will continue working with you for a just and lasting peace.”
Germany’s Friedrich Merz, whose party won the country’s national election last weekend and is poised to be the next chancellor, said Berlin stands with Ukraine “in good and in testing times.”
“We must never confuse aggressor and victim in this terrible war,” Merz wrote Friday.
During the tense exchange, the commander-in-chief and Vance said Zelensky was not grateful for the assistance the U.S. has provided to the war-torn country and that he does not have the necessary leverage to usher a peace agreement with Russia.
Zelensky pressed the vice president over his claim that a deal with Putin could be forged to end the war in Eastern Europe that has been raging for over three years. Ukraine’s president then alluded to Putin’s refusal to exchange prisoners, backtracking on previous ceasefire deals and his continuous attack on the war-torn country.
Vance said it was “disrespectful” for Zelensky to visit the White House “to try to litigate this in front of the American media.”
“Right now, you guys are going around and forcing conscripts to the front lines because you have manpower problems, you should be thanking the president for trying to bring an end to his conflict,” the vice president said.
Zelensky said America’s proximity to the conflict has allowed it to not feel direct implications, but the wartime leader warned that could be altered soon, an assertion that was not received well by Trump.
“Don’t tell us what we’re going to feel because you’re in no position … to dictate what we’re going to feel,” Trump told Zelensky on Friday. “We’re going to feel very good and very strong. You’re right now, not in a very good position.”
The president added that Kyiv lacks “the cards right now. With us, you start having cards.”
He warned Zelensky that he is “gambling with the lives of millions of people, you’re gambling with World War III … and what you’re doing is very disrespectful to the country, this country, that’s backed you far more than a lot of people said they should have.”
Poland’s Prime Minister Donald Tusk assured Zelensky and the Ukrainian people that they are “not alone.”
Moldova’s President Maia Sandu wrote Friday that the truth “is simple.”
“Russia invaded Ukraine. Russia is the aggressor. Ukraine defends its freedom—and ours,” she said. “We stand with Ukraine.”
Some European leaders stood by Trump.
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, a close ally of Trump’s in Europe, praised Trump’s handling of the meeting, proclaiming that “strong men make peace, weak men make war.”
“Today President @realDonaldTrump stood bravely for peace,” Orbán said on X. “Even if it was difficult for many to digest. Thank you, Mr. President!”
The European Union (EU) foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas, of Estonia, argued that the “free world needs” a new leader.
“Ukraine is Europe,” Kallas wrote in an X post on Friday. “We stand by Ukraine. We will step up our support to Ukraine so that they can continue to fight back the aggressor.
She added that after Friday’s meeting, it “became clear that the free world needs a new leader. It’s up to us, Europeans, to take this challenge.”
Trump called off the peace agreement negotiations with Zelensky, arguing that Ukraine’s leader is “not ready for Peace if America is involved, because he feels our involvement gives him a big advantage in negotiations,”
Zelensky thanked Trump after their meeting and reiterated that Ukraine “needs just and lasting peace, and we are working exactly for that.”
