'Don't do it': Trump claims he delayed Russian invasion of Ukraine in talks with Putin
Former US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin (GettyImages)
Former US President Donald Trump claimed his conversation with Russian President Vladimir Putin supposedly "delayed" Russia's invasion of Ukraine by several years. He described his relationship with the Russian dictator as "very good" in an interview with Fox News.
"With Putin, I have a very good relationship. I mean, I haven't spoken to him in a long while, but I had a very strong relationship," Trump said
He repeated his claim that Putin supposedly would not have started a full-scale war against Ukraine if he (Trump) was the US president.
"Look, I talked to him (Putin). I said, if you do it (invade Ukraine), there's going to be hell to pay. It's going to be a catastrophe. Don't do it," he said. According to the ex-president, Putin initially did not believe Trump would take any action. Trump, also a 2024 presidential candidate, said that Putin believed "maybe 10%" of what he was saying, but that 10% was "all you needed" to stop the invasion.
When asked whether he thought Ukraine was a separate country from Russia, Trump said it was, but that it used to be one country, and "Putin liked it that way", hinting at the dictator's nostalgia for the USSR.
Trump repeatedly promised to "end the war within 24 hours"
Running for US president, Trump has repeatedly made loud statements, promising voters to "end Russia's war against Ukraine in 24 hours" if he becomes head of state again.
Trump also caused controversy by suggesting he would allow Russia to take part of Ukrainian territories to avoid war. Moreover, he refused to call Putin a war criminal, as this could allegedly hinder possible negotiations.
As a result, Trump's former National Security Advisor, John Bolton, said world leaders have already dubbed Trump a "laughing fool" who should not be the next US president due to his statements about Russia's war against Ukraine.
President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy has already responded to the US ex-president's words on "ending the war". He reminded that Trump, who promised to end the war in 24 hours, did not end it even before the full-scale invasion.
