White House Turmoil as Europe Debates Ukraine Security

Katie Zacharia is leaving her White House press secretary role after less than a week, as President Donald Trump’s approach to Russia’s war on Ukraine raises questions about whether Europe can act together on security. A White House official confirmed to AFP that Zacharia was “transitioning” out. Several US media outlets, including The New York Times, reported that Trump fired her. Trump denied dismissing Zacharia, saying the media had “brutalized” her.

A brief at the White House

Zacharia’s first briefing lasted less than 15 minutes. On Tuesday, she listed what she called Trump’s achievements and took three questions. The brief appearance drew scrutiny over how she had described her legal qualifications while working as a commentator for conservative outlets, including Fox News and Newsmax.

Zacharia holds a law degree from a California university but hadn’t passed the bar exam, which is generally required to practise law in the United States. She acknowledged that on Thursday. Speaking to Fox News host Sean Hannity, a close Trump ally, she said: “It was never my intent to go into the practice of law.”

On Thursday, Zacharia told the pro-Trump outlet Real America’s Voice that she had registered for the exam but became “distracted and overwhelmed” by plans to move to China with her husband. She also said “many people in the field” had told her she could “label myself a lawyer” because she had a law degree. Trump said he’d encouraged her minutes earlier to reconsider taking the role: “You don't have to do this if you don't want to.”

Europe’s security question

Former Estonian President Toomas Hendrik Ilves assessed Washington’s changing approach to Russia’s war on Ukraine and its potential consequences for European security. He argued that domestic electoral calculations partly shaped the Trump administration’s apparent rapprochement with Moscow. His warning turned the focus to Europe: can it build political unity, strategic independence and military capabilities to defend its interests?

“If there's any time for Europe to begin to act as Europe and not as being strictly self-interested, then this is the time for it,” Ilves said. He also described nationalist movements, competing security priorities and differing attitudes toward Russia as forces fragmenting Europe and weakening its ability to act collectively.

Ilves challenged the assumption that Washington retains overwhelming leverage over Kyiv. He pointed to Europe’s growing financial commitment to Ukrainian defence and the possible domestic political costs for the United States if it withdraws intelligence support. He warned that divisions could deepen within the European Union, separating leaders who take security seriously from those who block progress for domestic audiences.

“If we don't take that issue seriously,” Ilves said, “I fear we will have far more vociferous tendencies within the European Union between those that take the security side of this seriously and those countries or leaders that will block progress simply for their domestic audiences.”

Pressure on Moscow, time for war

A Kyiv Independent video featuring historian and journalist Anne Applebaum asked why Russian President Vladimir Putin was pressing Trump to stop Ukraine’s strikes on Russian oil refineries. Applebaum argued the attacks were putting real pressure on Moscow and that Trump’s approach risked giving Russia more time to continue its war against Ukraine. The fetched page provided no further transcript or details of her remarks.