Dressing up for the bully: What Volodymyr Zelenskyy's ‘suit' says about appeasement in the age of Trump

Indian Express

2 days ago

If the art of managing Donald Trump is an exercise in deference, the European leaders gathered in Washington DC this week to discuss an end to the Ukraine-Russia conflict could be said to have achieved some level of mastery. Conversation at the summit hummed along, with a certain degree of cordiality evident in the exchanges, even if there were misgivings about the terms of the 'peace' proposed by the US President. Sufficient gratitude was expressed by all the guests for the host's attempts to end the three-year-long war. And, most notably, as observers of every political hue pointed out, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy wore a suit (or something like one, but we will get to that).
Given that Zelenskyy's refusal to dress 'appropriately' was blamed for playing a part in how poorly his February visit to the White House had gone, this could be seen as progress. Six months ago, Trump had been visibly irked by Zelenskyy's appearance in his army green sweatshirt and cargo pants, greeting him with the sarcasm-laden observation, 'Oh, you're all dressed up'. The military-inspired outfit has come to be closely associated with the Ukrainian president since the Russian invasion in 2022, a variation of which he wore each of the five times he met President Joe Biden in Washington during this time. Under the Trump presidency, however, the attire has only caused irritation, being described earlier this year as 'disrespectful to the highest office of the country' by Brian Glenn, a member of the White House press pool who works for the MAGA outlet Real America's Voice.
The February episode was, in a way, a clash between two men with an intuitive understanding of spectacle, who know well how to dress to speak to their respective constituencies. Both Zelenskyy and Trump have showbiz history; the former, before he became president in 2019, had been a successful comedian and actor, noted for his lead role in the series Servant of the People (which is also believed to have inspired his political career). The change in his wardrobe, following the Russian invasion in February 2022, reflected his new position as a wartime leader, designed to show solidarity with his country's armed forces — in a December 2022 interview, he told The Financial Times' Christopher Miller that he would go back to wearing a suit and tie (and shave off his beard) only after Ukrainian victory in the war.
Trump, the first reality TV star to become US president, also uses costumery to send out a message, garbing himself in the colours of the American flag — blue suit, red tie, white shirt — as a display of his brand of patriotism. This particular combination has, indeed, become something of a uniform for other notable members of the administration, particularly Vice President J D Vance and Secretary of Defence Pete Hegseth (the women in Trump's orbit have their own 'uniform' of stiff, immaculately waved hair, body-hugging sheath dresses and, frequently, a small gold crucifix around the neck). Under a president who values loyalty above all else, such fealty in costume is a significant non-verbal indication of allegiance to the man himself.
Which is why Zelenskyy's decision to suit up for his second meeting with Trump at the White House has been seen as a conciliatory gesture, signalling a great willingness to appease. As to whether the all-black, tie-less outfit with military elements qualifies as a suit at all — there has been considerable debate over this question at least since June 25, when the Ukrainian president attended a dinner before the NATO summit wearing the same outfit. It sparked a massive controversy on Polymarket, a cryptocurrency platform used for betting, where punters were asked to place their money on whether or not Zelenskyy would wear a suit before July. The dispute, with over $200 million at stake at one point, flared up when, after photos of the NATO dinner emerged, the gamble went the way of those who had betted against Zelenskyy wearing a suit. Those who had taken a punt on the opposite position claimed market manipulation and threatened lawsuits. Some sort of final word on the matter came from Derek Guy, editor of the menswear blog Put This On, who said that while the suit met the technical definition of a suit — in that it featured a jacket and pair of pants cut from the same cloth — the military-inspired details like the shape of the collar, lapels and the four patch pockets meant that it did not fit the social expectations of a suit.
Ultimately, of course, all that really mattered was that Trump loved the 'suit'. In the Oval Office before the press, with fulsome praise this time from Glenn — 'you look fabulous' — the President touched his Ukrainian counterpart on the shoulder and said, 'I said the same thing.' Perhaps not the ceasefire that the beleaguered Zelenskyy had hoped for, but the only one he's likely to get.
[e-mail]