So what exactly happened?That's a good question because I have no idea what Zelensky was thinking.
This was not a situation where President Donald Trump was beating him over the head or demanding he submit to a specific narrative surrounding the war in Ukraine.
On the contrary, the meeting was essentially over when Zelensky decided it'd be a great idea to try to publicly embarrass Trump and Vice President JD Vance in front of the press...
This was a colossal miscalculation by Zelensky.
- Trump has never accepted the idea that Ukraine is doing the United States a favor by fighting Russia as a way of justifying unlimited aid.
- Perhaps Joe Biden found that argument persuasive, but Joe Biden is not in office anymore.
Russia is not going to invade the United States or any NATO country (if for no other reason than a lack of capability), and using that as a type of blackmail for support was never going to play...
Fairness or being "right" doesn't factor into a situation like this. Zelensky is in a desperate spot, and Trump had largely acquiesced to a very Ukraine-friendly deal over the last few days (including lowering the repayment amount to just $90 billion).
The negotiations were over.
- All the Ukrainian president had to do was show up, shake hands, smile for the cameras, and sign the deal.
- His attempt to lecture Trump and Vance for the cameras was an ego move that he didn't have the leverage to pull off...