When Leadership Fails: A Diplomatic Disaster on the World Stage

Last Friday, the world witnessed one of the worst interactions between leaders in recent memory on national television. The behavior of this country’s leaders was, without a doubt, an example of counterproductive and poor leadership. 

Counterproductive leadership falls into five categories: abusive behaviors, self-serving behaviors, erratic behaviors, leadership incompetence, and corrupt behaviors.1 Last week, we saw at least the first four on full display:

  • Abusive behaviors – When a leader exceeds the boundaries of their authority by being abusive, cruel, or degrading toward others.
  • Self-serving behaviors – When a leader’s actions are primarily motivated by self-interest, prioritizing their own goals and needs over those of others.
  • Erratic behaviors – When a leader exhibits poor self-control or volatility, leading to unpredictable actions. Examples include blaming others, deflecting responsibility, losing their temper at the slightest provocation, behaving inconsistently, displaying insecurity, or being unapproachable.
  • Leadership incompetence – When a leader’s actions are ineffective due to a lack of experience or willful neglect.

From a bad leadership perspective, we clearly saw callous leadership, in which the leader and at least some followers were uncaring or unkind.2

We all understand the global status of the United States, so there was no need to publicly disparage the president of another country—especially one who has been engaged in a war since 2022. Of course, none of the U.S. leaders in the room had that experience; the closest was the Vice President, who served as a military journalist in Iraq for six months. 

U.S. leaders should have exercised some grace, but instead, they chose to humiliate the Ukrainian president in front of the world.

As Lieutenant General (Retired) H.R. McMaster, former national security adviser during Mr. Trump’s first administration, said over the weekend:

“Vladimir Putin couldn’t be happier… Because what he sees is all of the pressure on Zelenskyy, all of the pressure on Ukraine, and no pressure on him.”3

I watched the interaction live last week, and there is plenty of blame to go around. Here are four key observations:

  1. The media was terrible. A truly ridiculous question was asked about why President Zelenskyy was not wearing a suit, followed by a journalist provoking the U.S. president about what the U.S. would do if Russia invades the area where the U.S. plans to extract minerals in eastern Ukraine. The press fully understood they were asking inflammatory questions, seemingly intended to provoke a reaction from the U.S. president, who is known for losing his temper under pressure. While the media thrives on ratings, they bear some responsibility for what happened last week.
  2. The lack of leadership from the U.S. It was clearly an attempt to energize their political base, but in doing so, they played right into Putin’s information and influence campaign. Their messaging to Russia, China, Iran, and North Korea was disastrous.
  3. Foreign leaders should conduct official interactions in their official language. When engaging with the current U.S. administration, visiting leaders should adhere to this practice. In President Zelenskyy’s case, he should have conducted the press conference in Ukrainian. This would have allowed the Ukrainian people to hear their leader’s message clearly and ensured that Russia—undoubtedly watching—fully understood Ukraine’s position. Additionally, using interpreters would have slowed down the rapid counter-responses from American leaders, as they would have had to wait for translations, creating a more balanced discussion. Some of what President Zelenskyy intended to communicate was lost due to the U.S. leadership’s manipulation of the communication process, taking advantage of the challenges of mental translation. Anyone who speaks multiple languages understands how difficult this can be, especially when facing a hostile agenda.
  4. President Zelenskyy’s political advisors need to better prepare him for visits to the United States. Given the current administration’s behavior, he needs to stick to a script, deflect stupid questions from the media, and avoid being drawn into interactions with callous U.S. leaders.

After the fiasco in the U.S., President Zelenskyy traveled to Europe, where I was glad to see him receive better treatment. I hope the UK Prime Minister and the French President provided him with useful advice ahead of his next high-level engagement with U.S. leadership.

What happened last week was unnecessary, but it serves as a clear example of how not to conduct high-level government engagements. It will undoubtedly become a valuable case study for those studying leadership and political science.

  1. Army Doctrine Publication (ADP) 6-22, Army Leadership and The Profession. (P. 8-8). Washington, DC: Department of the Army.
    ↩︎
  2. Kellerman, Barbara. Bad Leadership. (P. 43). Massachusetts: Harvard Business School Press, 2004. ↩︎
  3. https://www.cbsnews.com/news/trump-zelenskyy-us-ukraine-relationship-60-minutes/ ↩︎

84 thoughts on “When Leadership Fails: A Diplomatic Disaster on the World Stage”

  1. Edward, I watched this disgusting event several times. I just couldn’t believe how the White House was being desecrated and our leaders were deliberately humiliating the president of another country. Thank you for writing about this!

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  2. Thank you for your post… I was in Asia for. most of February. Came back on that fatal day. Didn’t watch the… “show” until the next day. I watched the entire 49′ to understand the triggers. (Yes, the question about the suit was stupid…)

    Vance was clearly the one who lashed first at Zelensky… Then Trump blew his top when Z. told him that eventually the US would “feel” it one day. That’s when Trump practically insulted him.

    Again, thanks for your blog… I’ve been looking for place to listen to what Americans are saying right now… (And I have found a few old friends in the comments)

    Keep up the good work.

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    1. You’re welcome, and I really appreciate your comments. I think I understood what Zelensky was trying to say because the U.S. will definitely feel it one day if Russia continues to disrupt the sovereignty of other countries without facing any real challenge. I think if he had conducted the engagement in Ukrainian, it would have gone so much better. I also agree with you about Vance—he definitely started the whole thing, and, in my personal opinion, on purpose. But I could be wrong, of course.

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      1. We all could be wrong, of course. Which would be nice. Sadly, I don’t think so. This is long-planned operation to install dictatorship in the US of A. Just look at the proposed bill on elections? (Forgot the name). basically aims at stopping women and minorities from voting. “I’m sorry ma’am, your birth certificate says your last name is Smith. Your current ID says Jane Doe.”
        “Doe is my married name…”
        “Well, you’re gonna have to bring a proof of that, and since you don’t have a passport, you can’t vote. Next!”

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  4. Your post is so very clear and levelheaded, Edward. Thank you for breaking it down so well. I really appreciate your ability to articulate the complexities and to somehow bestow a sense of calm to your readers. I had never considered the importance of foreign dignitaries speaking in their native languages and it makes perfect sense to me now. Thank you! My heart and head are in such turmoil over all of it- all the horrors I had never expected to visit our nation. Growing up, I always expected more positive progress to continue as human knowledge and compassion grew. But I have wrong. It is a world turned upside down. I wish I could talk to my father. He’s been gone for a long time, but he was a WWII veteran who enlisted the day after Pearl Harbor was attacked. He modeled quiet respect in every situation. Anyway! Thank you again.

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    1. Thank you so much, Lori. Oh, I’m sure your father would tell us some truths about how this country should be projecting respect the right way—and how isolationism doesn’t work. Thank you for sharing the part about your father.

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  5. A very spot-on analysis and approach. It was a debacle, and that’s putting it mildly. We are aware that these things happen behind closed door meetings, but a public dressing down, designed to humiliate, was uncalled for. The administration has made their intentions clear.
    This isn’t the first time we’ve seen how shallow geopolitical alliances are when power changes hands… just the first time in my lifetime that we got to witness it publicly.
    Another great post, Edward.

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    1. Thank you very much, Nigel. It was really painful to watch and, like you said, uncalled for. Their agenda is very toxic, and it’s not going to succeed; it will only leave us more isolated. It will take a long time to recover our image once this administration and way of thinking have passed away a few years from now.

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      1. I have to agree with you that the damage has been done. Mr. Z isn’t the first foreign head of state to be shunned by a new administration after being adored by the old one. But the way it was handled was done for maximum humiliation. A real power flex, and no one will respect the US moving forward.

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  8. I’m honored to read such a post in defence of people being humiliated. In this case you talk about president Zelensky, but I think you have this attitude towards any human being. Thank you so much. Warm hugs from Italy. I’m just reblogging your post as soon as I can translate it in a good italian. Vicky ❤

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  9. Very good points and well broken down analysis, Edward. I love how you related it back to leadership and why that is so important. I try not to comment too much on politics but agree it could’ve been done a lot better 🙏 Great and well thought out. ☕️ ☕️

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  10. Very good analysis of the situation. President Trump is throwing away the US influence and power into Russia and EU’s basket.

    The new alliances will be bae for American leaders and public.

    We all want the war to stopped but the way the US president wants to achieve that will make the matter complicated.

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  12. Thank you for articulating what was inappropriate and wrong with the interaction in the White House with Zelenskyy last Friday. Verbal abuse is not all right and is utterly uncalled for at the international level!

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    1. You’re welcome, Rebecca. Their behavior was definitely unacceptable and reflects poorly on them, but again, I don’t think they care about that because they are living in a parallel universe.

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  13. Great and informative article Edward! I don’t understand where our country is headed, how this man is in office and what the heck he is doing.

    He is a disgrace to democracy and world leadership. I just constantly shake my head, everyday he’s pulling something new and yet the people of this country, at least the average citizens are going to be paying more and more for his blunderings.

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    1. Thank you, Melissa. I don’t understand it either. I guess some people wanted this to happen, which is why they voted for him. I’m still scratching my head over those who didn’t vote, thinking they were punishing Biden. I hope none of them are protesting now because the mess we’re in is thanks to them. Not voting has consequences.

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    1. I’m still hopeful. He only cares about his brand and legacy, and soon he is going to realize that what he is doing will affect that, prompting him to autocorrect. I just hope it doesn’t take too long because the longer it takes, the harder it will be for us to recover.

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  15. A very pondered and solid post, Edward! It’s quite sad to see how some leaders use their power for things quite far from their true potential and interest of people. And also like the show-off of contemporary entertainment, instead of providing real help when needed. Some carry the heavy burden of their oppressed nation; others pretend to cooperate, not helping in any way. Not even in the basics of diplomacy. Sometimes, I think that ONLY our prayers and light can actually do something to unblock unfair situations like this one in Ukraine! At least that we can do! And it has power! Thank you for wrapping up all this situation in such a clear and down-to-earth way, Edward! Very clear and meaningful! I appreciate reading! Lots of light and blessings to you, my friend*

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    1. Thank you so much, Susana. I think you are right about the power of prayer and light. If people spent more time meditating and searching their souls for what is truly good for humanity, they would be in a better position to vote and elect the right leaders to solve the big problems affecting this world.

      You know what’s sad about all of this? Our leaders call themselves Christians, but all I see in them is darkness.

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  17. I think the discussion with a Mafia Imperialistic US where Oligarchs rule is over. Alignment with Russia is treason. We in Europe have to fend for ourselves. That’s the sad reality.

    The bullying of Zelenskyy is inadmissible. The whole highly unusual “press conference” in the Oval Office was a setup to humiliate a man who fights for the survival of his country. Speaking in Ukrainian wouldn’t have saved him from this malicious plan.

    I will do a post today with links to a documentary explaining the history of Russia since 1985 until the arrival of Putin. Explains also why Ukraine is in this weak position now.

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    1. I think you are right, Chris, about the setup—it looked that way. There was definitely a lot of bullying. I think that if he had spoken in Ukrainian, the venue might have shifted from the Oval Office to one of the main hallways, providing less opportunity for attacks from others in the room. But I agree that they would have found a different approach to execute their malicious plan.

      I look forward to reading your information. I have some background knowledge, but more is always better. Thank you for your comments, my friend.

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      1. Thank you for your understanding 🙏 I was worried that I was a bit too harsh. But since last Friday, my world is upside down 🫣 Anyway, I finished my post about Russia. It will be published in the next few minutes

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  20. I missed this one because I haven’t been following the news lately. One of those breaks a person has to take for their sanity. I’m tempted to go find the footage, because apparently I want to join in on having my blood pressure sky rocket. Ha. I’m aware the active soldiers and officers cannot ever say anything, but I do wonder how many are quietly/ privately embarrassed as well.

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    1. Don’t do it. You’re going to get extremely mad—it was that bad. My guess is that the majority are embarrassed because what he did goes against all the values and leadership education we received.

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  22. You make a good point about Zelensky speaking in his native language, Edward. His English has improved tremendously but T and even more immature V take advantage of any sign of weakness. This is going to be quite a presidency. Hopefully, it ends in four years and something miraculous happens to soften Trumpty Dumpty.

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  25. Edward, you have described all the negotiation approaches so very well, and you are able to point out areas of “deficiency” in the approaches taken by the president and vice president of the currently most powerful country in the world – your country – with respectful tact. My hat is off to you; you are a professional of the very best sort. If only Trump and JD had a speck of your humanity and your understanding of the value of diplomacy.

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    1. Thank you very much, Jane. But to be honest, it took me all weekend and a few drafts to arrive at this final post. It’s very difficult to spend a professional career learning about leadership and leading people in the military, only to see the commander-in-chief destroy every leadership trait known in a few minutes. I saw many leaders in the Department of Defense get fired for less than what I saw on Friday.

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      1. I’m not surprised it took that much of your time, it was beautifully and professionally written and I knew that was important. That spectacle had to have been even harder for you to watch than those of us who haven’t been directly involved in the military or state dept work. And tomorrow we all start the trade wars, based on nothing more than a whim of this president.

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        1. I know. 🤦🏻‍♂️ So, my son is taking U.S. history in high school and just learned about the late 1920s Hawley-Smoot Tariff and how it destroyed our economy. He asked me, “If they didn’t work then, why are we trying that again?” That was a great opportunity to talk about learning from failures to avoid repeating them in the future.

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    1. Thank you, Liz. It was sickening, and it seems like they were very proud. In the end, they said it was good for the American people to see what had just happened. I, for one, didn’t like what I saw.

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    2. Well said, Edward. The entire fiasco was one shocking. I particularly appreciate your recognizing the 4th point.

      The laughing, the public lack of decorum; the Trump/Vance behavior was terrible. It was like a couple of high school bully’s laughing about putting a kid in a locker. But Zelensky–and others–have got to show the awareness to stay out of the minefield. All of us in front of a TV know that any second Trump is speaking that something bad or out of left field may occur. Heads of state should surely be mindful of it.

      Thoughtful analysis, Edward. I’m going to go back to my corner now and just keeping shaking my head in disbelief.

      –Scott

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  27. Counterproductive leadership – I love how you broke this down. And such great suggestions for how to do it better. It’s embarrassing that our leaders don’t know how to behave better.

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  28. Thank you for all of this, Edward. You said so many of the things I’ve been discussing with dear ones…horrified by the incivility and the disrespect. I admire you for synthesizing the concerns in your four spot-on observations. Bravo! Grace under pressure is the phrase I kept coming back to, related to President Zelenskyy. If only our leaders could demonstrate a modicum of the same. Shameful. 😔

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  29. Your observation #3 is one that should particularly be followed – “Foreign leaders should conduct official interactions in their official language.” Trump has a difficult time hearing and understanding anyone with a slight accent, and tends to make fun of or ridicule what he doesn’t understand. Also as you state, the translation gives everyone time to process what has been said, and slows down the rapid counter-responses. French President Macron used this to his advantage and kept things in a more positive light, even while correcting Trump on certain truths.

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    1. Macron is a perfect example, and thank you for mentioning him, Rose. I think Zelenskyy needed better advice and more time to prepare. Trump’s first administration and the current one are very different, and world leaders need to adjust accordingly.

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