Trump claims friendship with Putin could have averted war
In an interview with Fox News, Donald Trump discussed a "great" conversation with Vladimir Putin and boasted about his friendly relations with global dictators. He mentioned that Putin wouldn't want to see him as an "enemy," and claimed that if he had been U.S. president earlier instead of Joe Biden, there would have been no war.
Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin held a phone conversation on Tuesday, during which they agreed on a 30-day ceasefire concerning only energy facilities and infrastructure. Russia conditioned a full ceasefire on the complete halting by the West of weapon and intelligence supplies to Ukraine.
After the conversation with Putin, Trump gave an interview to Laura Ingraham, the host of "The Ingraham Angle" on Fox News. The former U.S. president stated that the Russians had surrounded about 2,500 Ukrainian soldiers. He emphasized that, for now, Americans are not involved in the conflict but cautioned that they might be if the situation escalates to the level of a world war.
Trump praises relations with dictators
"Strange things happen," Trump assessed. "I think we had a great call, it lasted almost two hours, talked about a lot of things and toward getting it to peace," he boasted in front of the camera.
During the interview, Trump addressed trade issues involving China and Russia, suggesting that both countries are interested in negotiating agreements with the United States. He expressed the belief that President Xi is open to making a deal and that Russia also seeks an agreement. Trump also emphasized that the U.S. has undergone significant changes in recent months, claiming that the country has regained global respect after previously being disregarded and ridiculed due to what he described as incompetent leadership. He further asserted that the ongoing war would not have occurred had he been in office.
"I had a very good relationship with Putin. I had a very good relationship with President Xi, a very good relationship with Kim Jong-un of North Korea—lots of good relationships," the former U.S. president boasted. As he added, Putin once told him, "If you're my friend, I'd hate to see you as my enemy.' He said that very strongly," Trump argued.
