It takes a special kind of evil to know that you have the survival of an entire nation in the palm of your hand, and choosing to clench your fist and watch them squirm. President Trump and Vice President Vance met with Ukranian President Volodymyr Zelensky at the Oval Office on Friday to agree to a deal that would grant US access to minerals in exchange for continued aid. It devolved into one of the most embarrassing displays in the history of American diplomacy.
There’s no doubt that without American help, Ukraine would have fallen to Russian forces long ago. Everyone, including Trump Vance and Zelensky, know that without the continued support of the US, Ukraine’s chances of keeping the Russians at bay are slim. With these asymmetric dependence conditions in mind, the president and vice president decided to shout at and humiliate the war-weary Ukranians.
It was truly hard to watch as Trump and Vance repeatedly yelled at Zelensky that he should be more grateful and that he was in no position to dictate anything.
Vance said things like, “Have you said thank you once?”, “Just say thank you,” and “We know you’re wrong.” Trump said things like, “You’re in no position to dictate what we’re going to feel”, “Your country is in big trouble”, “You’re not winning this”, and “You have to be thankful. You don’t have the cards, you’re buried there.”
As Ukraine enters its third year of a grueling conflict where thousands of Ukrainian soldiers, women, and children have died and millions displaced, our leadership decided that it was a great time to bleed the battered country and hold aid hostage while demanding access to their minerals. Zelensky had no option if he wanted to save his country and so he complied, agreeing to sign the deal.
After weeks of having to listen to Trump parroting Putin’s lies, hinting that we would abandon the vulnerable country, and attacking the legitimacy of his presidency, Zelensky arrived at the Oval Office and was told that diplomacy with Russia is the solution. What prompted the barrage of attacks by Trump and Vance was that Zelensky questioned whether diplomacy was really the answer.
An understandable apprehension given that diplomacy was tried countless times to prevent Putin from invading. A lucid unease given that Russia violated their Friendship Treaty with Ukraine when they invaded the Crimean Peninsula, violated the Budapest memorandum (where Russia agreed to respect Ukrainian sovereignty in exchange for removing Soviet nukes from their territory), violated the Minsk agreements, and violated numerous cease-fire agreements.
It is difficult to find something in Russia’s recent history that would indicate that they respect international agreements. What its history does tell us is that they like to sign agreements and then violate them as soon as they see an opportunity for advantage.
For expressing an entirely sensible opinion and having the audacity to disagree with the great and powerful administration, Trump and Vance made it very clear to Zelensky that the perilous position that his country finds itself in means that he is their dog, and they don’t want to hear the dog chiming in.
Ukraine is not the only one who is benefitting from American intervention. Russia, a great international rival, has been severely diminished. Their military has been revealed to be so weak that they have had to import malnourished North Korean soldiers to help them continue their offensive.
And yet, we see what Trump and Vance do when they have someone by the short and curlies. It doesn’t matter that the owner of said curlies is attempting to save his people from annihilation at the hands of a cruel dictator – they pounce on the opportunity to extract benefits, and rub his nose on the ground in front of the world. You could see in Zelensky’s face that he was struggling with restraint in the face of utter disrespect.
They and Zelensky understand that pride is a price the Ukrainians must pay for their survival. Trump and Vance made it clear that if they want America’s help, groveling is the only way. Ignore the crazy nonsense that Trump spews, keep your mouth shut, and never stop acknowledging that we are the ones that are saving you. It takes a special kind of cruelty to present this sort of a dilemma to a broken country: set your pride aside and beg or die.
Rafael Perez is a columnist for the Southern California News Group.