I'm not making an observation about whether he should have used another language, but just that this was one of the reasons why he was at a huge disadvantage in terms of being able to deal with the blatant bullying.
What I'm saying is that language mattered little. If Zelensky was an anglophone from the UK, he was going to get shafted just the same (as it all looks like he walked straight into a trap there).
This comes across as highly dismissive. The man can speak three languages very competently. That's two more than Vance and three more than Trump. Obviously language matters, but for Ukrainians democracy and sovereignty matter more.
I repeat: language obviously matters, and it's one of many factors Trump/Vance exploited to create an intimidating atmosphere. But it's not such an overwhelming factor that it would make Zelensky turn to Russia.
Which is ... Russian? Should have aligned himself with the Kremlin, like Lukashenko, if rhetoric/language mattered more for diplomacy and politics.
> toxic tactics that they can get away with because of the power position they hold
True. No matter the language such situations are bound to happen amidst power struggle.