Former President Donald Trump declared at a rally in South Carolina on Saturday that his personality kept the US “out of war” during his term. In Florence, the former president also told rallygoers that “no one was harder on Russia” than he was, and that if he had been in charge, Russia would not have dared to grab “one inch” of Ukrainian land.
Since the beginning of the Russian invasion, Trump has made similar statements, claiming on February 24 that the attack would never have happened if he were president. According to a report by Business Insider, Trump warned during the event that the crisis in Ukraine “may escalate to World War III” and that if he had been in office, he would have been able to take a tougher line with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Donald Trump “Emboldened” Vladimir Putin to Invade Ukraine
The ex-POTUS went on to declare that the “senseless” slaughter in Ukraine was caused by “a lack of respect,” despite the fact that he was impeached in 2019 for withholding $400 million in military aid to Ukraine.
Various parties, including seasoned diplomats, have publicly chastised the former President for praising Putin, calling him “smart,” and labeling Putin’s reason for invading Ukraine as savvy and genius.
Donald Trump asserted that he was able to deal with Russia while in office, repeating his assertion that “nobody was ever tougher on Russia than me.” Since Russia invaded Ukraine three weeks ago, Trump has made similar statements, including claiming on February 24 that the invasion would never have happened if he were still president.
Meanwhile, US President Donald Trump’s attempts to cut off military supplies to Ukraine in 2019 certainly spurred Russian President Vladimir Putin to attack the nation, according to Marie Yovanovitch, a former US ambassador to Ukraine. On July 25, 2019, Trump contacted Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to encourage him to open an inquiry into claims of corruption against former Vice
President and then-presidential candidate Joe Biden and his son, Hunter. In an attempt to push the Ukrainian president to investigate the Bidens, Trump asked officials at the Office of Management and Budget to put a hold on $400 million in military assistance funds for Ukraine, IBT reported.
According to Yovanovitch, transcripts of the disputed phone discussion between the two global leaders, disclosed in September 2019, proved that Trump saw Ukraine as a “pawn” and was willing to sacrifice the country’s national security for his own gain, emboldening Putin to strike.
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