Trump Rewrites History to Help Vladimir Putin
The New Republic (nprofile…6kn7)
Donald Trump is once again rewriting history to make it seem like Russian President Vladimir Putin never invaded Ukraine. During an appearance Thursday in the Oval Office with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, Trump seemed unsure whether Russia would forfeit its seized territory. “I don’t know if they would have to give anything back. I guess … Crimea?” Trump said, sounding confused. That’s probably because it’s clear that Trump does not intend to force Russia to relinquish any of its seized territory now—and Russia has previously refused to do so. “You know, uh, I said it last time: Crimea was given by Obama. Biden gave ’em the whole thing. And Bush gave ’em Georgia. And Trump didn’t give ’em them anything.”Trump once again managed to rewrite the story of Russia’s illegal seizure of other territories, but in his version, Putin wasn’t responsible for any of it. Putin seized Crimea in 2014, and as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy noted when he visited the White House last month, “nobody stopped him.” After Trump’s first term, the situation was the same, Zelenskiy said—but pointing this out got him scolded and tossed from the premises. Cut to 2025, and Russia now controls roughly 20 percent of Ukraine’s territory. But the U.S. president is still content to play dumb about the role that his administration has played in Russia’s illegal occupation.Trump’s support for Putin during his first term in the White House, and his lack of support for Zelenskiy, emboldened Moscow and weakened Kyiv, making way for Russia to launch its deadly multiyear ground offensive in Ukraine in 2022.Trump’s continued rhetoric now serves to normalize Russian aggression and put the onus on anyone else for the ongoing invasion of Ukraine. When the U.S. temporarily paused military and intelligence aid to Ukraine last month, Russia moved forward with its efforts to push Ukrainian forces out of Kursk—an area that Ukraine had hoped to use as a bargaining chip in peace negotiations. The flow of aid restarted this week after Zelenskiy said that he agreed to Trump’s 30-day ceasefire agreement. But Zelenskiy added that his country would not recognize any occupied Ukrainian territory as Russia. Putin said, “We definitely support” the deal but that several questions still remained. He warned that Ukrainian forces in Kursk would need to “surrender or die.” He added that Moscow would wish to retain at a minimum 18 percent of the Ukrainian territory it had stolen.
https://newrepublic.com/post/192727/donald-trump-rewrites-history-vladimir-putin
Donald Trump is once again rewriting history to make it seem like Russian President Vladimir Putin never invaded Ukraine. During an appearance Thursday in the Oval Office with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, Trump seemed unsure whether Russia would forfeit its seized territory. “I don’t know if they would have to give anything back. I guess … Crimea?” Trump said, sounding confused. That’s probably because it’s clear that Trump does not intend to force Russia to relinquish any of its seized territory now—and Russia has previously refused to do so. “You know, uh, I said it last time: Crimea was given by Obama. Biden gave ’em the whole thing. And Bush gave ’em Georgia. And Trump didn’t give ’em them anything.”Trump once again managed to rewrite the story of Russia’s illegal seizure of other territories, but in his version, Putin wasn’t responsible for any of it. Putin seized Crimea in 2014, and as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy noted when he visited the White House last month, “nobody stopped him.” After Trump’s first term, the situation was the same, Zelenskiy said—but pointing this out got him scolded and tossed from the premises. Cut to 2025, and Russia now controls roughly 20 percent of Ukraine’s territory. But the U.S. president is still content to play dumb about the role that his administration has played in Russia’s illegal occupation.Trump’s support for Putin during his first term in the White House, and his lack of support for Zelenskiy, emboldened Moscow and weakened Kyiv, making way for Russia to launch its deadly multiyear ground offensive in Ukraine in 2022.Trump’s continued rhetoric now serves to normalize Russian aggression and put the onus on anyone else for the ongoing invasion of Ukraine. When the U.S. temporarily paused military and intelligence aid to Ukraine last month, Russia moved forward with its efforts to push Ukrainian forces out of Kursk—an area that Ukraine had hoped to use as a bargaining chip in peace negotiations. The flow of aid restarted this week after Zelenskiy said that he agreed to Trump’s 30-day ceasefire agreement. But Zelenskiy added that his country would not recognize any occupied Ukrainian territory as Russia. Putin said, “We definitely support” the deal but that several questions still remained. He warned that Ukrainian forces in Kursk would need to “surrender or die.” He added that Moscow would wish to retain at a minimum 18 percent of the Ukrainian territory it had stolen.
https://newrepublic.com/post/192727/donald-trump-rewrites-history-vladimir-putin