Former President Donald Trump stated that he initially believed the Russia-Ukraine War would be the easiest conflict to resolve, but it turned out to be otherwise. He also claimed that the war would not have started if he had remained in the White House after the 2020 elections. “This was a thing that would have never happened had I been president. If I were president, it would have never happened. And it didn’t happen for four years,” he said, adding, “Most people agree it didn’t happen, nor was it close to happening,” according to ANI.
Despite a summit in Alaska where Trump urged Russian President Vladimir Putin to hold talks with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, no peace deal materialized. In February 2022, Russia launched a large-scale invasion of Ukraine, aiming to demilitarize and “de-Nazify” the country, according to Putin.
The Russia-Ukraine conflict, which began in 2014 with Russia’s annexation of Crimea, escalated into full-scale war in 2022. Ukraine has launched counteroffensives in the south and northeast, while Russia has captured key areas, including Mariupol and parts of Donetsk and Luhansk. In August 2024, Ukraine launched an incursion into Russia’s Kursk Oblast.
The United Nations reports over 10,000 civilian deaths, with millions displaced due to the ongoing conflict.
In his opening remarks, UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer praised the strong UK-US ties and expressed that both countries are ready to define this century together. The leaders also announced a new tech prosperity deal, CNN reported. Starmer added that Russia’s attacks demonstrate that Putin is not interested in peace, and they discussed ways to increase pressure on him to agree on a lasting peace deal.
Trump also criticised the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) and European nations for buying oil from Russia. “They’re not doing the job. NATO has to get together. Europe has to get together. Europe is my friend, but Europe is buying oil from Russia. I don’t want them to buy oil,” he said. He added that the current sanctions are not tough enough and expressed willingness to implement sanctions if they were strengthened accordingly.
He specifically opposed European imports of Russian liquefied natural gas. “It’s not the deal, though. The deal is they’re not supposed, whether it’s natural gas or whether it’s cigarettes, I don’t care. They’re not supposed to be buying from Russia,” Trump stated, as reported by ANI.
The former US President further wrote a letter to NATO nations, stating, “I am ready to do major sanctions on Russia when all NATO nations have agreed, and started, to do the same thing, and when all NATO nations STOP BUYING OIL FROM RUSSIA.”
Additionally, Trump proposed imposing tariffs ranging from 50 to 100 percent on China. He wrote, “I believe that this, plus NATO, as a group, placing 50 per cent to 100 per cent TARIFFS ON CHINA, to be fully withdrawn after the WAR with Russia and Ukraine is ended, will also be of great help in ENDING this deadly, but RIDICULOUS, WAR.”
Trump further added, “China has a strong control, and even grip, over Russia, and these powerful tariffs will break that grip.”
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