WASHINGTON — Hundreds of Ukrainian flags waved alongside those of the United States, Lithuania, Latvia, Georgia, Belarus, Norway, Finland, and other nations in a display of solidarity with Ukraine at Saturday’s protest in front of the Lincoln Memorial.
As February 24 marked three years of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, people around the world raised concerns over President Trump’s foreign policy and his ties to Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Ilona Doerfler from Kyiv has been living in the United States for more than 30 years and considers it her second home. She actively spoke out about the danger of Trump getting closer with Russia because in her opinion the U.S. future depends on Ukraine.
“I think our futures are tight now. If we let tyranny be built in Ukraine, it will continue with fighting democracy in the United States. It will not stop in Ukraine. It will propel its evil power into the U.S.,” said Doerfler.
U.S. policy toward Ukraine has shifted significantly since Donald Trump took office, which was one of the key topics addressed at the protest. Within his first month as a president, he arranged peace talks with Russian officials, excluding Ukrainian representatives. Trump has demanded half of Ukrainian natural resources. He also accused Volodymyr Zelenskyy of seizing power without elections and called him a dictator with an approval rating of 4%.
It remains unclear where Trump obtained this statistic. According to IBIF Ukraine, a project that researches Ukrainian society, 63% of Ukrainians approve of Zelenskyy’s presidency. Elections in Ukraine were canceled due to martial law, as they are impossible amid active combat, territorial occupation, and the displacement of millions of Ukrainians.
In his press conference with French President Emmanuel Macron Monday, Trump was asked why he trusted Putin. He said, “I believe he wants to make a deal.”
Last week, he inaccurately blamed Ukraine for starting the war and keeping it going.
“I think I have the power to end this war, and I think it’s going very well. But today I heard, ‘Oh, well, we weren’t invited.’ Well, you’ve been there for three years,” Trump told reporters at his Mar-a-Lago resort. “You should have never started it. You could have made a deal.”
Europeans from countries that know first hand what it is like to be Russia’s neighbor, gathered for the demonstration. They expressed alarm and warned Americans that Putin cannot be trusted. People were walking with posters of Putin’s pictures which capture “Donald [Trump], FYI, this is a dictator.”
“There is only one godless, ruthless dictator in this war”—Vladimir Putin,” said Michael Sawkiw, Jr., president of the Ukrainian Congress Committee of America
“If we stand up to him, all of Europe may be free and the life of the world may move forward into broad sunlit uplands,” Sawkiw added. “But if we fail, then the whole world, including the United States, including all that we have known and cared for, will sink into the abyss of a new dark age made more sinister.”
Also present at the protest was Andriy Smolensky, a Ukrainian soldier who lost both his arms and his eyesight on the front line. Speaking about Trump’s negotiations with Putin, he drew a historical parallel to World War II.
“I want to start from the phrase, ‘This deal is going to bring peace to our times.’ That was the phrase that Premier Minister [Neville] Chamberlain said after making a deal with Adolf Hitler,” said Smolensky, referencing a potential peace deal on Trump and Putin’s terms.
Smolensky said that he knows Trump could bring peace to Ukraine, but it must be a just peace, not one that favors Putin.
Due to growing concerns over Trump’s foreign policy, many in Europe fear that a U.S.-Russia peace agreement would signify Putin’s victory, potentially paving the way for further invasions.
European ambassadors to the U.S. also joined the Saturday protest, showing solidarity with Ukraine. Leena-Kaisa Mikkola, Finland’s ambassador to the U.S., expressed concerns for her country’s future, given its 833-mile border with Russia. Finland only joined NATO in 2023, a decision prompted by the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
European Ambassadors to the U.S. stand together in front of the Lincoln Memorial with Ukrainian and European Union flags. (Sofia Sorochinskaia/MNS)
“What’s happening in Ukraine is affecting all of us. We want to honor the Ukrainians who are paying for their lives, fighting against an aggression that invaded their country three years ago,” said Mikkola.
Norway’s ambassador to the U.S., Anniken Huitfeldt, also reaffirmed her country’s commitment:
“I talk on behalf of the Norwegian government and we will stand by Ukraine.”
“It’s more important than ever, in our opinion, to stand up for the common boundaries and support Ukraine,” said Huitfeldt.
Toby Davis, a former political analyst at the State Department, walked by the Lincoln Memorial carrying a Georgian flag. She wanted to remind fellow demonstrators that parts of Georgia also remain occupied by Russia.
“I could not possibly not come out and support Ukraine and remind everyone that Georgia too is under attack,” said Davis. “I am hoping that the American government understands that they must be strong in support of Georgia and in support of Ukraine. If they want peace through strength, then they have to show strength.”
The Baltic countries are very concerned about being invaded by Russia if the United States let Putin win. Nevertheless, since they are NATO members, it would be a different situation for Russia, since all NATO countries would have to intervene.
Vesta Matze was among more than a dozen demonstrators waving Lithuanian flags. She was born and raised in a Lithuanian city just 30 miles from the Russian border. Supporting Ukraine now feels more important than ever to her. She said Lithuania could be next.
“Russia very openly speaks about it now, that the next one will be us,” said Matze. “We are maybe seven times smaller than Ukraine. Ukraine did a lot of work for everybody in Europe. They save our peace.”
