An international security summit is due to take place in London today - overshadowed by Friday's row between Donald Trump and Volodymyr Zelenskyy in the White House.

The Ukrainian President is attending today's talks, along with the Presidents of the European Commission and Council.

Mr Zelenskyy flew into London yesterday for hastily arranged talks with British Prime Minister Kier Starmer.

Former fighter pilot and military analyst Sean Bell told The Anton Savage Show that European leaders have two options - to tread the diplomatic middle road, or step up to the plate to provide more support to Ukraine.

However, he said European military assistance would likely lack key tools supplied by America.

“If you look at it from a financial perspective, Europe and the rest of the world provides about the same amount of money as America does,” Mr Bell said.

“But when you look at absolutely military hardware, the vast majority comes from America; there’s all sorts of intelligence stuff that will be almost impossible for Europe to step up.

“Quite frankly, in the last three years, Europe had the capacity to increase its defence industrial base – in other words, get more stuff produced – and they failed to do that."

A cardboard sign at protest against invasion of Ukraine in Helsinki, Finland. Image: Jani-Markus Häsä / Alamy. 26 February 2022

Mr Bell said former Soviet states such as Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia, will be feeling very vulnerable.

“If America not only has a spat with Ukraine, but actually takes this on and says, ‘No, we’re going to step away from NATO, we’re going to become far more America first and only worry about ourselves’ - that has huge implications,” he said.

According to Mr Bell, we could be seeing the beginnings of a world where “everyone just worries about themselves, and Ukraine risks being left alone”.

He said this would have “profound implications for our own nation”.

'Difficult position' for Trump

However, Mr Bell said that President Trump had “probably got himself in a slightly difficult position”.

“President Trump got elected on the premise that he was going to bring this specific war in Ukraine to an end,” he said.

“I think a lot of military analysts recognise that it’s a very difficult one to win and therefore, do you allow it to grind on?

“So, do you need some weight brought to bear to finally bring the war to an end and just accept the fact that Russia has got some more territory, but find ways to make sure that Russia can’t do it again?

“The only way to do that is obviously to negotiate, and rather than alienate President Putin, I think he wanted to be on a table – Trump famously wants to do deals.”

Russian President at left with US President Donald Trump during the G20 meeting in Japan, 28 June 2019. Photo: White House

According to Mr Bell, this negotiating style "suddenly creates bedfellows" as it unravels.

He said Ukrainians believe that Russia will never end its attacks unless there are “robust security guarantees” put in place.

Taoiseach's White House visit

Meanwhile, the Irish public is divided on whether the Taoiseach should criticise US President Donald Trump in the White House this month.

The latest Ireland Thinks poll in the Sunday Independent has revealed 43% think the Taoiseach should criticise him, 50% think he shouldn't and seven per cent don't know.

71% believe he is right to go on the visit, compared to less than 24% who thought he should boycott the trip.

Listen back here:

Main image: The Ukrainian President, Volodymyr Zelenskyy (right) and the British Prime Minister, Keir Starmer (left) are seen having a short conversation front of the Prime Minister's Office in London. (Credit Image: © Krisztian Elek/SOPA Images via ZUMA Press Wire). 1 March 2025