26.12.2024
The head of the aggressor country Russia, Vladimir Putin, is initiating a meeting with the elected US President Donald Trump. Trump himself announced this. The situation of the Russian economy, which has been put on a war footing, is extremely difficult, and the successes of the occupation army on the Ukrainian front are very illusory. The Kremlin dictator needs to resolve the issue of this
war of aggression as soon as possible.
If Trump meets with Putin, the move could cost him too much inside the US, so the likelihood of that happening is slim. But what trump cards does Putin have in case the dialogue does take place? None. The compromising material on Trump that is in the Lubyanka, if made public, will boomerang on the Kremlin.
This opinion was expressed in an exclusive interview with OBOZ.UA by anti-Russian activist, head of the Stop Russian Terror Foundation (USA), Herman Obukhov .
– Could you clarify the situation with the meeting between Trump and Putin? On the one hand, Trump claims that Putin wants to meet with him “as soon as possible .” On the other hand, Putin does not directly confirm this. At the same time, Moscow reports that a number of countries have offered their venues for such a meeting. Could Putin really ask Trump to meet before the inauguration? And is this possible? What game is Putin playing?
– Probably no one knows this except Putin and 2-3 other people. Probably no one knows this except Putin and 2-3 other people. In fact, Russia’s situation is very difficult … difficult, both in the economy and on the fronts. It seems that there is some progress on the front, but it is all illusory, it can quickly disappear under certain conditions.
What venues? Turkey and Switzerland were considered, but in Switzerland Putin could simply be arrested on a warrant from the International Criminal Court. Turkey is unlikely to go, but Trump will not fly to Turkey. Perhaps Hungary offers a venue, but it is also unlikely to be suitable.
– In your opinion, is Putin interested in meeting with Trump right now? What would he like to say? Maybe issue some kind of ultimatum?
– No, he definitely cannot issue an ultimatum. This is complete nonsense. These are figures of completely different importance. Who is Putin and who is Trump? But Trump also does not want to immediately lose face, starting his second presidential term.
On a number of platforms, I asked the question: would Roosevelt have gone to negotiate with Hitler in 1944 or 1945? Whether any of the senators will remind Trump of this or not is unknown. But Trump has a rather complicated situation here. On the one hand, the desire to be a peacemaker, and on the other, Putin’s reputation, to put it mildly, is already very tarnished.
Europe is not ready for any negotiations with him. And I can’t imagine Trump shaking hands with Putin and talking to him about anything.
The question is whether there will be such a meeting at all. Talks are ongoing, but it is not a fact that it will happen before the inauguration or even after. There will be advisers, there will be discussions, but in the end, Trump will still make the decision. What will it be? He is a rather crazy person, and it is not a fact that what he said today, he will repeat or do tomorrow.
Take his statements about Greenland or Panama, for example (Trump has said he wants to annex the Danish island of Greenland and the Panama Canal to the United States. – Ed.). But after such statements, everyone will laugh and that’s it, because this is war, and no Congress or Senate will approve it. It is clear that buying is impossible, but directing your armed forces not to defend, but to wage an aggressive war… This is nonsense.
– Based on what Trump says, he probably believes that with Putin it is possible to talk about something, discuss something, reach compromises, etc. Do you agree?
– He is a self-confident person with the features of a narcissist. As far as I know, he often ignores business advice. But Trump also understands that in certain cases he can lose his face and the support of even those Republican senators on whom he hopes. There is an advantage of four senators who determine the position of the entire Senate, that is, the advantage of the Republican Party. And, probably, 5-10 senators who can behave quite sharply. And this means that Trump can lose the Senate. If they vote together with the Democrats against some of Trump’s decisions, he will not be able to do anything.
This is not a situation where you can just bang your fist on the table.
– Please clarify. Is this a decision regarding the war in Ukraine?
– Yes. I mean, Trump needs to look at the Senate and a little bit at Congress. There, in general, there is a tiny advantage – one congressman. Under certain circumstances, the Democrats can lure one or two Republicans, and they will become independents – and that’s it, Trump loses Congress.
If all of Trump’s foreign policy falls apart, then senators need to be re-elected. Many people don’t understand this. In two years, there will be midterm elections for the Senate, and everything there could change dramatically if Trump breaks the bank in two years. And he needs to take that into account and understand that too.
But despite being crazy, he understands it. We remember his first presidential term, what he promised and what he delivered. He promised a lot, in particular regarding medicine, but he did nothing, because everything seems to be working, why go there? And he didn’t build a wall on the border with Mexico either. These are all words that are forgotten a day or two after they were said.
But Bankova needs to be careful. Believing everything Trump says is frivolous. In eight years, as president, former president, and presidential candidate, he has said so much…
– So there may not be a meeting between Trump and Putin?
– Honestly, I doubt that it will take place before the inauguration. I am convinced that the meeting will be initiated by Putin. And if it does take place, Russian propaganda will turn everything upside down and declare that it was Trump who insisted, that it was his initiative, that he wanted peace, that he invited Putin, that they are partners and almost friends. Because otherwise nothing will work out.
– I agree with you that Putin and Trump are incomparable figures. And yet, do you think Putin has any trump cards up his sleeve in case the meeting takes place?
– I think that now he has no trump cards. I am practically convinced that there is compromising material on Trump in Lubyanka, dating back to Soviet times. But Trump doesn’t care about that anymore, he can’t be re-elected for a third term. If Putin throws something into the media space, even American or European, Trump will say – he is lying. And for Moscow it will be even worse than now. So the compromising material will now work against Moscow.
What other trump cards might be up their sleeve? Honestly, I don’t know. Everything is very difficult for Moscow and it is necessary to somehow stop the war. And the war cannot be frozen – it can only be stopped. You can freeze some conflict, like in Israel. There are constant conflicts there, but there is no large-scale war. Islamic terrorist groups do not have airplanes, they do not have ballistic missiles. But in Ukraine, everything is different, there is a war here.
And how to stop it, I think, even Trump and his advisers, the Pentagon and the CIA do not know. Because freezing, stopping hostilities on the contact line is a loss for both sides. How will Russian propaganda or Putin explain that we gave away part of the Kursk region? I can’t imagine. And it is in this sense that the operation of the Armed Forces of Ukraine in the Kursk region is justified.
– To sum up: would you advise Trump not to negotiate with Putin, primarily from the perspective of political threats to him?
– First, Trump wouldn’t listen to me even if I could advise him. Second, it’s important to understand that Putin, in addition to being a war criminal, is also a mafioso – a person who came to power and grew in power thanks to his connections with the Russian mafia, with the criminal world.
Does Trump want to deal not only with someone who started the war, but also with someone who had dealings with the mafia? I don’t know. At one time, Trump dodged a journalist’s question about his connection to the New York construction mafia. This was before his presidential term.
But shaking hands with a war criminal and a criminal means losing your face, your reputation. I think Trump has his own problems, so he can add other problems to himself. But I don’t rule out that he will continue Biden’s cause, support Ukraine, but when the war ends… I doubt that this will happen in 2025. Most likely, in 2026.
“Probably no one knows this except Putin and 2-3 other people. In fact, Russia’s situation is very difficult … difficult, both in the economy and on the fronts. It seems that there is some progress on the front, but it is all illusory, it can quickly disappear under certain conditions.”
The Bible says, pride leads to destruction, and arrogance to downfall. Despite mounting troubles in mafia land, Vlad certainly showed great arrogance during his TV question and lie session last week. His downfall is coming, and perhaps quicker than many would suspect.
Could a person who speaks so disparagingly about Ukraine/Zel, simultaneously describes the rat nazi as a “genius” and also demonstrates advanced symptoms of megalomania be the right one to get a just peace for Ukraine?
The genocidal bastard is only going to meet trumpkov now if he thinks there’s something in it for him.
On the other hand, if his filthy orcs were getting smoked at the rate of 5000/day+, he’d have to fuck off out of Ukraine or try to negotiate, but from a position of weakness.
And Europe as a whole is still not pulling its weight, and this only makes matters worse.