WHAT ZELENSKY CAN LEARN FROM BIBI

On February 24, 2022, Russia invaded Ukraine. In keeping with established Russian military doctrine, its invasion plans called for the immediate decapitation of the Ukrainian government, including the capture and execution of its President, Volodymyr Zelensky . The U.S. Government, which had confidential sources in the Kremlin, disclosed that Zelensky was a “prime target.”   Ukrainian intelligence disclosed that the Russians had marked Zelensky as “target No.1” and his family as “target No.2.”

The U.S. Government offered to evacuate Zelensky and his family from Kyiv to safety.

Zelensky declined the offer, stating: “The fight is here; I need ammunition, not a ride.”

It is worth recalling these facts while reviewing the nauseating scene that played out in the Oval Office last Friday. President Trump thought he could browbeat Zelensky, just as he had gelded his Secretary of State, who sat there, silent and ashen. But it simply was not in Zelensky’s DNA to stay quiet while Trump and his Vice Presidential lackey berated him. Instead, Zelensky calmly but forcefully corrected Trump and Vance when they uttered lies about Ukraine’s record of willingness to negotiate, Europe’s  level of support for Ukraine, and Putin’s trustworthiness.

He did not immediately correct their lie about not thanking the United States for its support, perhaps because he had thanked America so many times (33 times in English, and an unknown number in Ukrainian, according to one count), it hardly seemed necessary. Nevertheless, immediately after the meeting, he wrote on X: “Thank you America, thank you for your support, thank you for this visit. Thank you POTUS, Congress, and the American people.”

But however disgusting Trump’s performance may have been, Volodymyr Zelensky cannot entirely escape responsibility for the debacle.  After all, he knew full well the nature and character of the man he was meeting. Just days before the meeting, Trump had called him a “dictator without elections” and had stated that Ukraine “never should have started” the war. Zelensky should have been prepared to deal with Trump without jeopardizing Ukraine’s supply of American military assistance.

It would have been difficult but Zelensky could have placated Trump without groveling. How? By emulating another leader, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Israel, like Ukraine, is a nation under seige. Israel, like Ukraine, depends on American military assistance. And Israel, like Ukraine, puts the lives of its young men on the line, and refuses to even consider asking for American boots on the ground.

Until November 2020, Netanyahu and Trump enjoyed a good working relationship. Then Netanyahu committed a nearly fatal error. He became the first world leader to call Joe Biden and congratulate him on his election. Trump was disputing the election results. “I haven’t spoken to him since,” Trump told a journalist four years later, referring to Netanyahu. “Fuck him.”

Yet today, Trump and Netanyahu are closer than ever. How did that happen?

Netanyahu recognized that Israel could not afford to alienate any potential American president. So even with Trump out of office and apparently politically moribund, even after Trump publicly blamed Netanyahu for October 7, Bibi did not give up on Trump. He kept looking for ways to reestablish their close relationship.

In July 2024, while on a trip to the United States to meet with President Biden and to address Congress, Netanyahu, accompanied by his wife Sara, made a pilgrimage to Mar-A-Lago to dine with the former President on Trump’s own turf. The meeting followed a July 4 telephone call by Bibi to Trump, congratulating him on the occasion of U.S. Independence Day. These were gestures of respect.

After his election, Trump reciprocated, allowing Netanyahu to be the first foreign leader to visit the Oval Office in his second term. During the visit, Netanyahu praised his host as a visionary, declaring: “I believe that working closely with President Trump, we can redraw (the Middle East map) even further and for the better.”

Trump, perhaps inspired by Bibi’s praise, proceeded to try to live up to it. He promptly announced a plan for Gaza, under which the United States would take ownership of the Strip, move the residents out, and undertake a gigantic real estate development project designed to turn the devastated territory into the “Riviera of the Middle East.”

Trump’s cockamamie plan aroused condemnation by Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Turkey, Germany, and many other leaders. But Netanyahu diplomatically characterized it as “revolutionary” and “creative.” He added: “I think that President Trump’s proposal is the first fresh idea in years, and it has the potential to change everything in Gaza.”

Even though Trump himself has walked his plan back, he appreciated Bibi’s laudatory remarks. The current relationship between Washington and Jerusalem has never been closer. The day after the disastrous Oval Office meeting with Zelensky, President Trump signed a declaration to use his emergency powers to expedite the delivery of $4 billion in military assistance to Israel.

What lessons can Zelensky learn from Netanyahu?

First, with Trump all politics are personal. He may have certain convictions – economic mercantilism, anti-globalism – but they are of secondary importance. One can share those views and still be viewed with hostility. One can reject those views and still be treated cordially. The main interest of Trump is Trump. To woo him successfully, a visitor should compare him favorably to his predecessors. He should express admiration, even awe, for his election victories. Above all, he must show him respect.

Second, Trump likes quick victories. An effective visit is one that allows him to display a win to the world. Zelensky came to the White House to sign a rare earth minerals deal. The details had been worked out. It was an extortionate contract. Bret Stephens compared it to Franklin Roosevelt hypothetically forcing Winston Churchill to sign over Britain’s coal reserves without receiving security guarantees against Hitler. But whatever its flaws, it would have allowed Trump to claim a victory, and would have kept the military assistance pipeline open. Zelensky should have resisted the temptation to correct Trump and Vance on their numerous misstatements until the deal was signed.

Third, and most important in these dire circumstances, don’t give up on Trump. He may be quick to anger, but he is also quick to forgive – putting aside the question of whether or not he is qualified to forgive. JD Vance once compared Trump to Hitler. Marco Rubio once made derisive comments about the size of Trump’s genitalia. Yet there they both were, seated on the Oval Office sofa, witnessing at close range Trump’s efforts to humiliate Zelensky.

Who’s to say that Zelensky can’t obtain a ringside seat someday, even after the Oval Office disaster?

But as with all ringside seats, there is a price. Benjamin Netanyahu had to wait four years before Trump’s attitude toward him changed from “Fuck him” to something considerably more affectionate. During those years, Bibi worked at restoration efforts, always remembering that with Trump, all politics are personal, and all interactions must allow him to claim a win.

After the meeting, Zelensky flew to London, where he received expressions of support from an assembly of European leaders led by British Prime Minister Starmer and French President Macron, as well as King Charles.

European financial and military support is very important. But American support is crucial.

President Trump’s parting words to Zelensky were: “Come back when you’re ready for peace.” Volodymyr Zelensky is a proud man, with much to be proud about. So is Benjamin Netanyahu. The wisest course for Zelenksy, and his embattled country, would be for him to call Bibi and chat. And then, armed with the benefit of the Israeli leader’s experience, to go back to see the irascible but vital American President, and to tell him: “I am ready for peace, Mr. President. Are you ready to deliver it? For only you can do so.”