Today is the third anniversary of Russia's murderous invasion of Ukraine.
On this day--tragically--the United States sided with Russia, at the United Nations.
A headline, today, from The Washington Post: "U.S. votes against U.N. resolution condemning Russia for Ukraine war."
For some time, of course, we've known of Trump's peculiar, and dangerous, affection for Putin.
Last week Trump called Ukraine President Zelenskyy a "dictator." He said that Ukraine "should have never started" the war in 2022.
A few days later, he revised the latter remark--but still blamed Ukraine and the United States for the war. As Reuters reported, on February 21st:
"Russia attacked, but they shouldn't have let him attack," Trump said, adding that...Zelenskyy and then-U.S. President Joe Biden should have taken steps to avert the invasion.
The same Reuters report noted this: "Speaking at a White House event earlier on Friday, Trump was critical of Zelenskyy while refraining from negative comments about Putin." The report continued: "I've had very good talks with Putin, and I've had not such good talks with Ukraine," Trump said. "They don't have any cards, but they're playing tough."
In his September 2024 ABC News debate with Vice President Kamala Harris, during the presidential campaign, Trump refused to say if he wanted to see Ukraine win the war.
DAVID MUIR (to Trump): Your time is up. Just to clarify the question, do you believe it's in the U.S. best interests for Ukraine to win this war? Yes or no?
FORMER PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP: I think it's in the U.S. best interest to get this war finished and just get it done...Negotiate a deal. Because we have to stop all of these human lives from being destroyed.
On February 13th, he said he wanted Russia readmitted to the G7; Russia was removed from the group after its 2014 annexation of Crimea. "I'd love to have them back," Trump said.
A February 20th report about the G7 in The New York Times said: "The United States is opposing calling Russia the aggressor in the war with Ukraine in a Group of 7 statement being drafted to mark the third anniversary of Russia's full-scale invasion, three senior officials from countries involved said..."
A February 19th story in the Times said this:
Mr. Trump also suggested that future security of Ukraine would not be an American problem. "This War is far more important to Europe than it is to us," he wrote [on social media]. "We have a big, beautiful Ocean as separation."
On Saturday, February 22nd--this from the Associate Press--Trump told an audience at CPAC (the conservative political organization), of the fighting in Ukraine: "It affects Europe. It doesn't really affect us."
For Trump, it comes down to his seemingly limitless desire to please Putin.
And it comes down, for him--as it so often does--to money.
Trump wants Ukraine--a country in the midst of a war, fighting to survive--to repay the United States for the aid it has provided Ukraine, by forcing Ukraine to sign over hundreds of billions of dollars worth of minerals and other of Ukraine's natural resources--far more in value, it has been reported, than what the U.S. has in actuality given Ukraine.
Trump addressed the issue of reimbursement this weekend, at the CPAC conference in Washington. The Times reported:
“I think we’re pretty close to a deal, and we better be close to a deal,” Mr. Trump told the Conservative Political Action Conference on Saturday evening, noting that he wanted payback for past American military and financial assistance to Ukraine. He also said, “We’re asking for rare earth and oil — anything we can get.”
Trump said, today, as noted by the Times: "It was a lot of money and we had nothing to show for it."
Other than the fact that America--Trump clearly can't conceive of this--was making a noble and moral choice (joined by a broad international coalition) to side with an ally, against a ruthless dictator--a dictator for whom Trump, now back in power, is stripping away, surrendering, America's moral leadership.
