After a humiliating White House dressing down, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has flipped the script—trading defiance for deference in a high-stakes bid to stay in Donald Trump’s good graces.
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer and French President Emmanuel Macron spent five days urging Zelenskyy to recalibrate. Their advice? Play by Trump’s rules or risk losing everything. The shift became urgent when the White House abruptly froze US aid to Ukraine on Monday.
By Tuesday, Zelenskyy made his move. Ditching his usual directness, he lavished Trump with praise, hailing his “strong leadership” and going so far as to suggest Ukraine was ready to work under him to secure peace. He even entertained one of Trump’s key demands—offering a potential missile truce.
The flattery worked—at least temporarily. Trump beamed as he read out Zelenskyy’s letter of gratitude to Congress, signaling a rare moment of warmth. But history suggests this honeymoon won’t last. Trump has a track record of turning on allies, from Justin Trudeau to Emmanuel Macron, despite early camaraderie.
Behind the scenes, Trump’s closest allies—including his son, Donald Trump Jr., and Elon Musk—continue to attack Zelenskyy, amplifying Kremlin narratives. Any perceived misstep by the Ukrainian leader is swiftly weaponized against him in Trump-friendly media.
Former Ukrainian foreign minister Vadym Prystaiko summed up Kyiv’s grim dilemma: Can Ukraine shift Trump’s thinking—or is it already too late?
For now, Zelenskyy is betting that flattery is his best survival strategy. But with Trump offering no acknowledgment of Ukraine’s latest truce proposal, many in Kyiv fear the real endgame isn’t peace—it’s surrender.