Zelenskyy's White House treatment enrages Ukrainian-Canadians in Ottawa
Donald Trump appears to be learning from Vladimir Putin, one Ukrainian-Canadian says
Shock, rage and tears.
That's how some Ukrainian-Canadians and Ukraine supporters in Ottawa are reacting to Donald Trump's excoriation of Volodymyr Zelenskyy at the White House on Friday.
The Ukrainian president was in Washington hoping to secure security guarantees from the United States in return for his country's minerals.
Instead he received an unprecedented public dressing down from Trump and Vice-President J.D. Vance, who accused Zelenskyy of disrespect and lacking gratitude for American support against the Russian invasion.
With the United States looking poised to abandon an ally, some Ukrainian-Canadians are doubly concerned: not only about Ukraine's future against Russian aggression, but also that the U.S. president might also turn on Canada.
'Worst fears'
"Trump showed his claws and Vance certainly showed his claws," said Angela Kalyta, a Ukrainian-Canadian in Ottawa. "It was heartbreaking that our worst fears have come to pass."
Since Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, Kalyta has regularly protested outside the Russian embassy and has been sanctioned by the Kremlin for her activism.
She is now urging Canada to redouble support for Ukraine, while warning that Trump appears to have learned from the playbook of Russian President Vladimir Putin.
"As Ukrainians, we understand what it is like to live next to a huge bully," she said. "Ukraine and Canada are now facing a really similar problem."
She worries that Trump will not only abandon Ukraine but will escalate attacks on Canada beyond threats of tariffs.
"I've heard a lot of Ukrainians say, 'Guys, this is how Putin started it against Ukraine. Take this seriously,'" she said.
"These baseless grievances that are used to justify bad behaviour… this is what Putin did to Ukraine for many years, and then it escalated into the horror show that we have now."
Kalyta says her interactions with Russian consular staff during protests leave little doubt that they see the U.S. president as an ally. She and other protesters say one embassy worker has recently taken to taunting them with a red MAGA hat.
"They know Trump is their man," Kalyta said.
The Kremlin will view Zelenskyy's humiliation at the White House as a major breakthrough, she believes.
"Russia has for a long time been using hybrid warfare on the US in order to encourage all of these kinds of impulses in America," she said. "It's very clear that this is a huge victory for Russia's hybrid warfare."
'Stand united with Ukraine'
Trump's threats toward Zelenskyy make Canadian support for Ukraine more critical than ever, according to Ihor Michalchyshyn, the executive director of Ukrainian Canadian Congress.
"Canada's support will become more important in the sense that if the Americans walk away, there will be more pressure on all other partners to step up," he told CBC on Saturday.
"Ukraine needs that Canadian leadership, especially since we're the head of the G7 this year," Michalchyshyn added. "We certainly hope to see more blue and yellow flags out on the streets of Ottawa."
Rideau-Vanier Coun. Stéphanie Plante wore a toque with a Ukrainian trident to the Saturday opening of a francophone daycare centre in Sandy Hill, where she apologised for crying when speaking about Ukraine.
Ukraine is fighting to uphold democracy, human rights and freedom of speech, she said, noting that "in Canada we hold these values very dearly and very strongly."
Plante, whose husband is Ukrainian-Canadian, said it was paramount to emphasize that Russia remains the aggressor.
"It's extremely important that we hold firm and we stand united with Ukraine right now," she said.
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