Ukraine Brings Reinforcements To Trump Meeting, Hoping To Avoid Another White House Fiasco

LONDON — If he wants to springiness Ukraine’s leader nan aforesaid invited he did Russia’s Vladimir Putin, past President Donald Trump mightiness request a bigger reddish carpet.

Volodymyr Zelenskyy will bring heavyweight reinforcements to nan White House connected Monday — a unit of European leaders apt hoping to guarantee location is nary repetition of his past Oval Office showdown astatine a infinitesimal of moreover greater stakes for his state and nan continent.

The extraordinary nationalist bust-up betwixt Zelenskyy, Trump and Vice President JD Vance successful February stunned European powers.

Trump accused a waspish Zelenskyy of “gambling pinch World War 3,” and of disrespecting nan White House arsenic nan cameras rolled, earlier cutting nan gathering short and telling nan Ukrainian leader to travel backmost “when he is fresh for peace.”

Zelenskyy was successful Brussels complete nan play earlier arriving successful Washington arsenic European leaders scrambled to respond to Trump's changing stance.Simon Wohlfahrt / AFP via Getty Images

He returns Monday flanked by leaders from Britain, Germany, France, Italy and Finland, positive nan heads of nan European Union and NATO — a show of solidarity and an effort to guarantee Europe has a existent sound successful bid talks aft being excluded from Trump’s acme pinch Putin successful Alaska.

"It’s a objection of European unity and support to Ukraine precisely to debar what happened successful February repeating itself," Mujtaba Rahman, Managing Director for Europe astatine Eurasia Group, told NBC News.

He added that nan European broadside would beryllium "eager to forestall Zelenskyy being bullied into making concessions,” aft Trump fueled caller siren among Ukraine's friends by appearing to thin toward nan Kremlin’s position of things pursuing his talks pinch Putin.

The American president offered nary logic to deliberation that had changed successful nan hours starring up to Monday's crowded White House gathering.

Trump put nan onus connected Zelenskyy, saying he could “end nan warfare almost immediately, if he wants to,” and that location was “no going into Nato by Ukraine” and “no getting back” nan Crimean Peninsula that Russia illegally annexed successful 2014.

Trump and Putin met astatine Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson successful Anchorage, Alaska. Andrew Harnik / Getty Images

This nationalist unit has fueled fears that he could move up nan power connected Zelenskyy to work together to territorial concessions successful speech for a bid deal.

Hence nan Ukrainian leader will not beryllium going successful alone.

In British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, NATO main Mark Rutte and Finnish President Alexander Stubb, nan European contingent will characteristic 3 men seen arsenic successful astatine earning Trump's favor.

They will dream to usage that power to reverse nan evident inroads Putin made successful Alaska.

The gathering successful Washington will besides springiness nan leaders nan opportunity to talk early information guarantees for Ukraine, which U.S. typical envoy Steve Witkoff floated Sunday arsenic perchance looking akin to NATO’s Article 5.

Ukraine hoped to usage nan gathering to discuss an ironclad information guarantee and person Trump that a impermanent ceasefire is basal to statesman existent bid talks, a Ukrainian root acquainted pinch nan goals told NBC News. The information guarantees should beryllium treaty-level obligations, nan root said, which require Senate approval.

Rahman said nan quality of nan information guarantees was "absolutely cardinal to forestall Russian aggression successful nan future," saying nan Europeans would recreation to Washington hoping to "pin down nan item of what U.S. engagement successful Ukraine’s early information will be."

Citing a deadly strikes successful Kharkiv and Zaporizhzhia, Zelenskyy said Monday that Russia was continuing its attacks connected his state moreover arsenic talks were ongoing successful bid “to support unit connected Ukraine and Europe, arsenic good arsenic to humiliate negotiated efforts.”

And successful Kyiv, galore consciousness that conceding territory arsenic portion of nan broader bid woody Trump is now pursuing wouldn’t extremity nan warfare astatine each — it would only embolden Moscow to push further.

"It is precisely this alleged semipermanent bid of Putin’s that would let him to proceed waging war," said Oleksiy Goncharenko, a lawmaker for Ukrainian guidance statement "European Solidarity." "The quickest measurement is to found a ceasefire first, and only past statesman negotiations."

Europe’s leaders look to stock that instinct.

“If we are anemic pinch Russia today, we’ll beryllium preparing nan conflicts of tomorrow and they will effect nan Ukrainians and — make nary correction — they tin effect us, too.” French President Emmanuel Macron said Sunday.

If February was a fiasco, Monday is nan do-over — this clip pinch chaperones.