Europeans rally around Zelenskyy but will struggle to formulate a plan to defend Ukraine

European leaders rallied around Volodymyr Zelenskyy after his spectacular Oval Office bust-up with Donald Trump, but the rift between Kyiv and Washington leaves Europe with agonising choices about how to prop up Ukraine.

Friday’s confrontation, where the US president accused the Ukrainian leader of “gambling” with a third world war, caused consternation in European capitals and exacerbated fears of an irreparable transatlantic breach.