Trump and Zelenskyy’s (Zelensky, Zelenski) Blowup and the Implications on American Influence Throughout the World (part III)
Trump and Putin, a Bromance for the Ages
OK, I do apologize for giving you flashbacks of High School World History in part II of this series. I just wanted to make clear the underlying facts that pertain directly to the very tangible reasons for Ukraine’s stoic resistance in life or death modern day David and Goliath showdown.
Embarrassment of our nation on the world stage with camera’s rolling
The Negotiation Meeting Between Trump and Putin
During his campaign, Trump boldly announced that the war in Ukraine would never have happened under his presidency and that he could resolve it now in 1 day—a brash and flippant statement paired with his relentless claims that the election was stolen from him and handed to “Sleepy Joe” Biden. Naturally, he placed the blame for the war squarely on Biden’s “weakness” while absolving Putin entirely, despite Putin orchestrating not only the 2022 invasion but the 2014 annexation of Crimea during Obama’s tenure.
And let’s be clear: Russia’s aggression toward Ukraine didn’t begin in February of 2022. It was years earlier, even during Trump’s first term, when Ukraine was locked in a bloody conflict with Russian-backed separatists in Eastern Ukraine. And yet, in an apparent bid to play “world hero,” Trump in his second term has decided HE alone can bring this war to an end. Choosing to negotiate with Putin—the aggressor—first and without inviting Ukraine, the victim, to the table. What kind of peace negotiation excludes the party whose sovereignty is under attack and was the victim of a full blown invasion?
Behind closed doors, Trump and Putin carved out an agreement—a deal Ukraine had no say in and no choice but to accept in Trump’s mind. When Trump presented himself to the world as the self-styled savior who had brokered “peace,” it was little more than theater. His performance echoed a bad 1940s detective drama: a cop strolling onto the scene of a violent mugging, theatrically demanding the attacker “break it up” while secretly pocketing the bribe money from the mugger. In Trump’s warped reality, he even berates the victim for daring to call out their oppressor for their crime.
The parallels between Trump and Neville Chamberlain are impossible to ignore. I hope that any reader would know the reference to the infamous deal between then Prime Minister Chamberlain and Adolf Hitler in 1939, coming home from negotiations to England having given Hitler the Czechs in exchange for ‘Peace in our times’. Trump appears willing to gift Putin everything he wanted, just as Chamberlain handed Hitler Czechoslovakia for the empty promise of peace. Ukraine, like the Czechs, watched from the sidelines as their fate was decided without their input. The two superpowers carving up Ukraine, who had no choice but to sit and wait until Trump deigned give him audience. During this period Trump was already making it clear there would be no guarantees of security for Ukraine or any hope of reclaiming the territory Russia illegally gained in the war or had annexed. These were the “terms” he intended to force upon Zelensky—a leader whose forces have fought valiantly to make Russia pay dearly for every inch of Ukrainian soil for 3 years. Trump made a mockery of every Ukrainian soldier’s death as basically meaningless, not dying in the defense of their nation, but just a statistic. Statistics of the number dead are all Authoritarians understand, empathy for human suffering means nothing to men like Trump and Putin, nor the ideals and values the Ukrainians are fighting for.
Trump’s arrogance was on full display when he finally met with Zelensky in the oval office, scolding Zelensky like a child for daring to say that there would be conditions for any final ‘peace’ deal. Trump and his toady Vance, ignoring the unprecedented bravery Ukraine has shown in standing toe-to-toe with Russia. Trumps repeated demand for “peace” amounted to little more than a demand for surrender, exposing his willingness to placate a dictator at the expense of justice and sovereignty of an ally.
In the end, the only winner of this charade was Russia. Putin conceded nothing but walked away with everything, while Ukraine was offered nothing and told to sacrifice everything. And Trump? He showed the world just how far his megalomania and desperation for validation can go, playing the role of kingmaker while leaving the Oval Office tarnished by his theatrics.
The Informed Citizen 