For Britain’s prime minister, Sir Keir Starmer, who chaired the meeting and who had experienced a more congenial visit to Washington on February 27th, the priority was to secure European commitments to defend Ukraine while repairing bridges between Europe and America, and between Mr Zelensky, who sat next to Sir Keir at the summit, and Mr Trump.

Even as they have rallied to Volodymyr Zelenskiy's side after his Oval Office clash with Donald Trump, European leaders' approach to the war in Ukraine and the continent's security remains highly dependent on the U.