Odd Issue Before Big Meeting: Zelensky's Choice of Attire

The last time Volodymyr Zelensky went to the White House, he wore a black, military-style sweatshirt instead of a suit—and it didn't sit well with President Trump. "You're all dressed up today," the president said upon seeing the Ukraine leader, recounts the BBC. The subsequent meeting went disastrously for Zelensky, and the issue is once again a topic of discussion as Zelensky prepares to visit Trump Monday morning. Axios reports that the White House has asked Ukrainian officials whether Zelensky will wear a suit this time, as Trump would prefer.

The answer appears to be a compromise: Axios reports that Zelensky won't wear the sweatshirt again—which he dons in solidarity with his troops—and will instead wear a black jacket without a tie: "suit-style but not a full suit," as one of the sources puts it. Fox News, meanwhile, talks to a Ukrainian designer who also predicts a more formal look compared to the last White House visit. "He most likely will not appear in a polo," says Elvira Gasanova. "I think he will choose a black military suit or a military-style shirt with trousers—perhaps a jacket."

It might seem like a trivial thing, but Zelensky's clothing became a source of tension at the first meeting in the Oval Office. "Why don't you wear a suit?" asked Brian Glenn, a correspondent for the conservative cable outfit Real America's Voice, per the BBC. "You're at the highest level in this country's office, and you refuse to wear a suit." Zelensky shot back, "I will wear costume after this war will finish."