Aaron Blake: “The relationship between Donald Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has been one of intrigue and consequence from the start. What began with then-President Trump’s attempts to leverage Zelensky for political gain over Joe Biden in the 2020 election — the thing Trump was initially impeached for — has more recently involved candidate Trump’s efforts to kill two attempts at funding Ukraine’s defense against Russia’s invasion.”
“Through much of it, Zelensky has been mostly diplomatic toward the former and potentially future president who, regardless of the 2024 election results, holds considerable sway over the survival of Zelensky’s country.
But increasingly, Zelensky has apparently decided that diplomacy involves putting pressure on and, in some cases, directly criticizing Trump.”
