Donald Trump, former President of the United States, has expressed strong discontent with Russian President Vladimir Putin over the ongoing conflict in Ukraine. In an interview with NBC just this past Friday, Trump announced that he would speak directly with Putin over the next week. During the last GOP debate, Trump told Putin that he was mad at him. This intimate chat interestingly reveals their push-pull relationship, rumored to be a still “very good relationship.”
Trump’s biggest complaint has to do with Putin’s lack of faith in Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s ability to lead. This was all very strange coming from Trump, given that he has often blasted Zelenskyy himself for not being credible. He has repeatedly criticized Zelenskyy for going about the war the wrong way. He went as far as to brand him a dictator for not holding new elections.
In addition to addressing the situation in Ukraine, Trump threatened punitive measures against Iran if it fails to reach a nuclear agreement with Washington. His other oil import announcement — a 25% to 50% tariff on all oil imports, aimed directly at Russia — is more complicated. The enhanced sanctions would make it impossible for any country buying oil from Russia to do business in the US.
These comments come as history piles on the Trump administration for being soft on Russian aggression in Ukraine. Observers have criticized the administration for caving to Russian pressure to end the three-year-old war. Trump’s relationship with Putin has been at the center of debate and conspiracy for years, but what’s not debated enough is his clearly ineffective diplomatic approach.