Europe has a leadership vacuum. How can it handle Trump?

From left: President-elect Donald Trump, President Emmanuel Macron of France and President Volodomy Zelensky of Ukraine together for a meeting at the Elysee Palace in Paris, Dec 7, 2024. With Germany and France both in political turmoil, the new administration of Trump will begin at a time of instability for Europe. — ©2024 New York Times Company

WHEN President Volodymyr Zelenskyy of Ukraine met European leaders for dinner in Brussels last Wednesday, the shadow of President-elect Donald Trump hung over the gathering. But it is not just Trump’s return to the White House that has scrambled Europe’s response to the war in Ukraine.

It is also the political disarray across the continent – a wave of instability that is depriving Europe of robust leadership at the very moment that Trump is challenging its deeply felt support for Ukraine and its hard-fought resistance of Russian aggression.