From the moment that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy arrived in Washington, D.C., on Friday, President Donald Trump and Vice President J.D. Vance denied him the hero’s welcome he deserved. Instead, they orchestrated a deliberate ambush. Rather than reaffirming American leadership, Trump and Vance—supported by Elon Musk on social media—attempted to humiliate Zelenskyy, a courageous wartime leader. They mocked Ukraine’s fight against Russian President Vladimir Putin, a ruthless tyrant, and broadcast to America’s European allies—and, indeed, the world—that the United States can no longer be relied upon as a friend and ally. This was worse than mere incompetence. It was a coordinated effort to discredit Zelenskyy and, in so doing, strengthen Moscow’s hand in negotiations.
Their actions derailed a week of meticulously coordinated diplomacy. French President Emmanuel Macron, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, and Zelenskyy had each traveled to Washington to present a unified front of transatlantic resolve. Zelenskyy had aimed to secure a crucial critical minerals deal—one Kyiv hoped would come with some form of U.S. security guarantees. Now the administration may halt all military aid to Ukraine—a devastating decision, albeit, not an entirely unforeseen one. For weeks, Trump has openly clashed with Zelenskyy, branding him a dictator; refusing to acknowledge Moscow as the aggressor; and signaling unwavering trust in Putin—even musing about future business deals with the Russian president. In doing so, Trump has deliberately sabotaged Ukraine and undermined the alliances that have kept Americans safe for decades. Already, by Sunday, British Prime Minister Starmer had convened a coalition of nations willing to defend Ukraine. This coalition does not include Washington, a clear sign that Europe is ready to move on if the United States insists on abandoning its alliances.
These alliances are not abstractions, they are low-cost (or no-cost) investments in peace. It is no accident that the United States and Europe have experienced peace across the Atlantic after two devastating World Wars in which over 400,000 Americans gave their lives for the cause of freedom and democracy. It is also not a coincidence that the United States and Europe have maintained this peace, despite the threat of armed conflict and nuclear war that Russia has posed for decades—until Moscow shattered it with its invasions of Ukraine in 2014 and 2022.
The consequences of Friday’s shameful episode go far beyond embarrassment. This spectacle has put Americans in real jeopardy.
Trump wants to cozy up to a nuclear-armed adversary
Putin’s aggression is not a faraway problem. Russia is a nuclear-armed adversary with 5,580 nuclear warheads—many of which are targeted at American cities. Yet, Trump would like Americans to believe that the United States should get along with Russia. While the United States should not seek to antagonize an adversary or provoke needless conflict, Americans should be clear-eyed that Putin would like nothing more than to see the United States weakened.
Intelligence agencies warn that, within the next three to five years, Moscow could regain the strength to launch a new full-scale war, testing the resolve of the North Atlanic Treaty Organization (NATO). Russia is actively rebuilding its military; expanding its force presence along NATO’s borders; and positioning additional nuclear-capable missiles in Kaliningrad—a Russian exclave wedged between Poland and the Baltic states—within easy striking distance of Warsaw, Berlin, and Paris. Americans should have every reason to think that he will not stop at Ukraine. Putin has called the Soviet Union’s collapse “the greatest geopolitical catastrophe of the century,” signaling his desire to restore Russian dominance. While Trump may signal today that he is not willing to put American boots on the ground and respect NATO’s Article 5, a wider war in Europe could force a different reality. The question may not be whether the U.S. will be involved but instead if it will act decisively before the cost of action becomes immeasurably higher.
Furthermore, Russia not only poses a threat on its own, but it has also aligned itself with other American foes. It has deepened ties with China and North Korea—both nuclear powers—through strategic partnerships, supplying North Korea with weapons in exchange for munitions to sustain its war in Ukraine. It has bolstered Iran with drone technology and energy deals, while Iran has backed proxy militias such as the Houthis, who are actively fighting against Americans and American interests in the Red Sea.
For decades, the NATO alliance has provided deterrence that has kept the world from the brink of war. As the world’s largest and most formidable military power, the United States’ leadership in NATO has demonstrated to Russia that any aggression would be met with concerted strength. That foundation is now crumbling. Absent a unified front across the Atlantic, Putin will see an opportunity to expand his empire and consolidate his power—putting Americans at risk.
America alone is a dangerous prospect
As Sunday’s meeting of European leaders demonstrates, even the staunchest of U.S. allies are now openly taking steps to do what was once unthinkable: sidelining Washington on the world stage completely. Starmer announced that the West is at a “crossroads in history,” ready to provide for its own defense without the support of the United States. Germany’s next chancellor, Friedrich Merz, recently admitted he has absolutely “no illusions” about the United States and warned that NATO may soon not exist in its “current form.” After all, NATO doesn’t need a formal U.S. withdrawal to be rendered moot; it only takes the growing perception that America is no longer a dependable partner.
Such extraordinary remarks from longtime allies underscore how isolated the United States has become under Donald Trump—a sharp signal that America’s credibility and leadership are now in grave jeopardy. It is easy to break relationships but far harder to repair them.
Trump’s abandonment of allies doesn’t just leave Ukraine vulnerable—it leaves America standing alone in a global economic contest it cannot afford to lose. China has already surpassed the United States as the leading trade partner for more than two-thirds of the world, and if Trump continues his current course, Beijing will tighten its grip on the global economy while Washington watches from the sidelines. The consequences are stark: An America without allies, confronting a rising superpower with no economic leverage and no partners to back it up. This is not strength. It is self-inflicted decline.
Selling out to Putin doesn’t save the United States anything
Some will argue that U.S. leaders should focus on more pressing concerns at home. This is a false choice. The United States has the resources to stand up to thugs such as Putin if Congress prioritized smart spending on national security rather than slash cost-effective foreign assistance to accommodate tax cuts for the ultrawealthy and preserve costly and inefficient defense programs.
Since 2022, Congress has appropriated $174.2 billion in spending for Ukraine, or less than 1 percent of the federal budget for those years. Ninety percent of these investments benefit American companies and thousands of working people here at home. Compare this figure to the cost of Trump’s proposed “Iron Dome” for the United States—a defense system intended to protect against threats from, for one, Russian ballistic missiles. This system could cost upwards of $2.5 trillion dollars and still lacks the advanced technology necessary to provide effective deterrence. For that price tag, the United States could afford to support Ukraine for the next 37 years. Investing in American partners and allies is not only a smarter investment in collective defense—it’s more cost-effective as well.
Abandoning global leadership won’t fix inflation, crime, or health care—if anything, it could drive up energy prices in a greatly destabilized world. Russia has long used its energy exports as a geopolitical cudgel, with state-controlled giants such as Gazprom leveraging critical dependencies in Europe for decades. Once Putin realizes he can act with impunity, what’s to stop him from further weaponizing his petrocarbons? Cutting off supplies or sabotaging key pipelines to punish on a whim could send shockwaves through energy markets. Weakness doesn’t put food on the table, and retreating from our alliances won’t lower costs—but it could make the world more dangerous and expensive.
Conclusion
American leaders must act in response to the Trump administration’s actions, which are reshaping the world in fundamental ways that will reverberate for many years to come. The hard truth is that Ukraine cannot be abandoned without grave, irreversible consequences. Every reckless spectacle, every petty insult, every display of unserious leadership makes it easier for Putin to test his limits, to push harder, to escalate further.
The stakes are too high for complacency. For one, Congress ratified NATO and has committed the United States to its obligations under the treaty. Congress should make clear to President Trump, as well as to European allies, that it continues to support these obligations. Leaders who care about salvaging any hope for continued partnership across the Atlantic should make the case to Americans as well: Supporting Ukraine and our European allies isn’t charity. It’s investment in a world where dictators cannot redraw borders by force; where American leadership still means something; and where alliances continue to deliver the safety and prosperity our transatlantic relationships have provided for nearly a century.