Trump administration wants Zelenskyy in formal attire for Oval Office sit-down
global.espreso.tv
Mon, 18 Aug 2025 17:29:00 +0300

Axios reported the information, citing two sources with direct knowledge of the information.Zelenskyy's attire became an issue during his previous Oval Office meeting with Trump, which turned into a diplomatic fiasco. Trump disliked Zelenskyy's military-style clothing. He sarcastically remarked: "He is all dressed up today" when greeting him in the West Wing.Some American officials at the time believed that the suit issue somewhat influenced the catastrophic outcome of the meeting.Sources reported that Zelenskyy will appear at the White House on Monday wearing the same black jacket he wore at the NATO summit in the Netherlands in June. "It will be 'suit-style,' but not a full suit," said one source.At the NATO summit, Zelenskyy wore a business-style jacket for the first time since the 2022 invasion, and American officials said Trump was pleased with this."Zelenskyy came as a normal person, not crazy, and was dressed like someone who should be in NATO... So they had a good conversation," an American official told Axios at the time.One Trump advisor, partly jokingly, told Axios that "it would be a good sign for peace" if Zelenskyy wore a suit on Monday, but added: "We don't expect him to do it.""It would be great if he wore a tie, but we don't expect him to," said another official.A source added that Vice President JD Vance was more irritated by Zelenskyy's appearance and behavior during the last Oval Office meeting than Trump was.According to sources, Zelenskyy will not wear a tie on Monday.Trump is a big proponent of looking proper, which in his opinion means wearing a suit for a world leader. But his dissatisfaction with Zelenskyy last time wasn't just about clothing, his advisors say.American officials say the Ukrainian president has gotten better at appealing to Trump."Give him credit. He's not as bad as he was before," said a second Trump advisor.When asked if the summit would be a repeat of last time, the advisor replied: "No, absolutely not.""They've traveled very, very far, both of them. Zelensky will not show him pictures of dead children and then act like it's somehow his fault. The president has learned to just sort of like, you know, file away any irritations and go forward," he said.According to the advisor, European leaders will also be alongside Zelenskyy, "so it will be a completely different atmosphere than during the last meeting."Zelenskyy has not worn a suit since Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine began. Former Polish President Andrzej Duda once wished that Zelenskyy would come to one of the summits "in a suit," which would symbolize the end of the war in Ukraine.In the Oval Office in February, one reporter asked Zelenskyy why he didn't wear a suit to a meeting in the "highest level" office of the United States."Why don't you wear a suit? Do you own one?" the journalist asked."Do you have some problems?" Zelenskyy replied."Many Americans have problems with those who don't respect the Oval Office dress code," the journalist responded.After this, Zelenskyy stated that he would wear a suit after the Russian-Ukrainian war ends.
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