After being pushed out of the White House, Zelensky sought comfort in the UK, where British Prime Minister Keir Starmer hosted a European leaders' summit to discuss the Russia-Ukraine conflict and Ukraine's security. However, on the same day as the London summit, signals emerged in the U.S. about intentions to replace Zelensky.
On March 2, local time, European leaders gathered in London for a summit on the Ukraine crisis. Afterward, Prime Minister Starmer stated that the parties reached a four-point consensus: to continue military aid to Ukraine, involve Kyiv in peace negotiations, prevent future Russian invasions, and form an alliance to ensure Ukraine's peace.
Meanwhile, on the same day, Trump National Security Adviser Mike Waltz suggested in an interview that the U.S. hopes for a permanent peace between Russia and Ukraine but implied that Zelensky must step down. When asked if Trump wanted Zelensky to resign, O'Brien told CNN, "We need a (Ukrainian) leader that can deal with us, eventually deal with the Russians and end this war." He added, "And if it becomes apparent that President Zelensky's either personal motivations or political motivations are divergent from ending the fighting in this country, then I think we have a real issue on our hands."
This straightforward statement was interpreted as the U.S. seeking a new proxy to replace Zelensky.
House Speaker Mike Johnson also stated that if Zelensky does not meet U.S. demands, Ukraine might need a new leader. He told NBC, "Something has to change. Either (Zelensky) needs to come to his senses and come back to the table in gratitude, or someone else will have to lead the country to do that."
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio was less direct. He told ABC that since the argument at the White House on February 28, he had not spoken with Zelensky or the Ukrainian Foreign Minister. Rubio said, " We will be ready to re-engage when they are ready to make peace,."
In other words, the U.S. has historically not tolerated non-compliant regimes or leaders; there are ways to make them suddenly disappear. The four-point consensus proposed by Europe is essentially a desperate attempt to find strategic autonomy between the U.S. and Russia.
Analysts believe that Zelensky's political career is counting down. His tragedy lies in being both a symbolic icon of Western values and a sacrifice of realpolitik. The Trump administration's strategic concept of "land for Russia, resources for the U.S., and debt for Europe" is pushing Ukraine into the depths of a new form of colonialism.
On the other hand, President Trump's demand for NATO countries to increase defense spending to 5% of GDP and his intense conflict with President Zelensky at the White House have caused unease among NATO members.
Former NATO Supreme Allied Commander James Stavridis candidly stated that as U.S. commitment to the transatlantic alliance wavers, NATO could be in its "final days." He speculated that NATO might dissolve and transform into a European Treaty Organization.
Stavridis believes that Trump has driven a wedge deep into NATO's core... and that he has made it clear that he does not want to participate in aiding Ukraine. Stavridis said that now NATO member states do not know whom to support, and people might see the end of NATO and the beginning of what is called a European Treaty Organization.
Deep Throat
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Former Google CEO Eric Schmidt recently sounded the alarm in The New York Times: China is not just catching up in artificial intelligence and technology innovation, it is, in some areas, pulling ahead. Despite US efforts to curb China’s progress through export controls on advanced AI chips, Schmidt argues these moves have only fuelled China’s determination to cultivate talent, build resilient supply chains, and accelerate homegrown innovation.
Schmidt points to a new era: “From DeepSeek to Temu to TikTok, Chinese tech is starting to pull ahead.” The era when China trailed far behind the US is over. American restrictions have, paradoxically, pushed China to double down, producing world-class products and, at times, even leapfrogging the West.
Google Former CEO Eric Schmidt argues in a commentary that China is rapidly catching up to the United States in artificial intelligence and technological innovation. (Image source: X)
A Changed Landscape: From Copycat to Contender
Schmidt’s commentary highlights how technological advances are transforming daily life in China. Electric vehicles speed through city streets; apps offer drone food delivery; and humanoid robots from Unitree Technology have become household names after performing on the Spring Festival Gala, China’s most-watched TV program. These shifts underscore China’s emergence as a peer-and sometimes a leader in fields like AI, robotics, and electric vehicles.
Humanoid robots from Unitree Technology became an overnight sensation after performing a dance and handkerchief-spinning routine on the stage of the Spring Festival Gala.
Schmidt notes, “To win the race for the future of technology, and, by extension, global leadership, the US must discard the belief that it is always ahead.” For years, China lagged behind. In 2007, when Steve Jobs unveiled the first iPhone, only about 10% of China’s population was online, and Alibaba was still years away from its New York IPO. But the pace of change has been staggering. In just over a decade, China has transformed from imitator to innovator, with products that sometimes outpace their Western counterparts.
AI: From Playing Catch-Up to Setting the Pace
When ChatGPT launched in late 2022, a wave of Chinese copycats followed, widely seen as years behind their American rivals. Yet, as with smartphones and EVs, Silicon Valley underestimated China’s capacity to rapidly develop affordable, state-of-the-art alternatives. Today, Chinese AI models are closing the gap. DeepSeek’s V3 large language model, updated in March, now ranks among the world’s best non-reasoning models on some benchmarks.
Schmidt observes, “In a dozen years, China has gone from a copycat nation to a juggernaut with world-class products that have at times leapfrogged those in the West.”
Manufacturing, Robots, and Open AI
Schmidt cites Xiaomi as a case in point: once dismissed as an iPhone copycat, the company delivered 135,000 electric vehicles last year. Meanwhile, Apple abandoned its own EV project after pouring in $10 billion over a decade. China is also racing to deploy robots at scale. In 2023, it installed more industrial robots than all other countries combined and has ambitious plans for mass-producing humanoids.
A key difference is openness. Leading US tech firms develop proprietary AI models and charge for access, partly because training these models costs hundreds of millions of dollars. Chinese AI companies, by contrast, often distribute their models freely for public use, download, and modification. This approach broadens their global influence and makes their technology more accessible to researchers and developers everywhere.
Schmidt’s New York Times op-ed headlined: “DeepSeek. Temu. TikTok. China Tech Is Starting to Pull Ahead.”
The Roots of China’s Tech Momentum
China’s rise is underpinned by decades of investment in STEM education, robust supply chains, and a brutally competitive domestic market that rewards relentless iteration. Apps from Chinese e-commerce giants like Shein and Temu, along with social platforms like RedNote and TikTok, are among the world’s most downloaded. Combined with the popularity of open-source Chinese AI models, it’s easy to envision a future where Chinese apps and AI companions are woven into the fabric of daily life worldwide.
Schmidt warns, “This China-dominated future is already arriving, unless we get our act together.” He urges the US to learn from China’s strengths: sharing more AI technology and research, accelerating innovation, and promoting AI adoption across the economy. He also cautions against underestimating China’s willingness to endure short-term economic pain for long-term technological supremacy.
Sanctions: Fuel for Innovation?
Despite US restrictions on advanced chip exports, China’s recent breakthroughs suggest that sanctions have only spurred local entrepreneurs to train and commercialize AI with renewed vigor. Schmidt concedes, “It’s a hard truth to swallow, but Chinese tech has become better despite constraints, as Chinese entrepreneurs have found creative ways to do more with less.”
The End of US Tech Dominance?
Schmidt closes with a stark warning: “We’re no longer in the era when China is far behind us.” If China’s ability to innovate holds, if its AI companies remain open, and if the country stays on track to claim 45% of global manufacturing by 2030, the next phase of the AI race will be a no-holds-barred contest across every front. America will need every advantage it can muster.
