The relationship between Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin returns to the spotlight | War in Ukraine

A new book’s claim that former President Donald Trump had as many as seven private phone conversations with Russian President Vladimir Putin since leaving the White House has refocused attention on their politically tense relationship and on Mr. Trump’s sustained dialogue with world leaders as he seeks to return to power.

It is not surprising in itself that a former president would maintain ties with his foreign counterparts. But the details of the book by journalist Bob Woodward, Warraise eyebrows in light of a special prosecutor investigation, which examined, during the presidency of Donald Trump, potential links between Russia and the 2016 Republican campaign.

He also addressed Mr. Trump’s more recent criticism of U.S. aid to Ukraine as it fends off Russia’s invasion, statements that hinted at a possible overhaul of U.S. policy s he is elected.

I would caution any world leader against trusting Vladimir Putinsaid Emily Harding, who led the Senate Intelligence Committee’s investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election. She is now a national security expert at the Center for Strategic and International Studies.

The Trump campaign has denied the reports, as has the Kremlin, which is working to influence the 2024 election in favor of Donald Trump, according to US officials.

Serious concerns

Asked at a press conference on Wednesday, White House spokesperson Karine Jean-Pierre indicated that the administration would serious concerns if the reported calls were true.

We are not aware of these calls. I certainly can’t confirm any of these calls from hereshe said.

But, if this is indeed true, are we “worried”? Do we have serious concerns? Yes.

It’s no secret that Mr. Trump has held numerous meetings over the past year with top world leaders. He welcomed the nationalist Hungarian Prime Minister, Viktor Orban, and the Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu.

He also spoke in New York last April with Polish President Andrzej Duda and met with Volodymyr Zelensky during the Ukrainian president’s trip to the United States last month.

The meetings offer Mr. Trump an opportunity to differentiate his approach to foreign policy from that of President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic presidential nominee. He can at the same time consolidate his ties if he recovers the White House.

During Mr. Netanyahu’s July visit, Mr. Trump boasted of a excellent relationshipcreating an unspoken contrast with the more tense dynamic between the Israeli leader and Mr. Biden.

A long history

Although these meetings are publicly known, Bob Woodward’s book cites an anonymous aide who said Mr. Trump and Mr. Putin had as many as seven private calls.

That adds to long-standing questions about their relationship and what Donald Trump might be trying to accomplish, noted Robert Orttung, a professor of international affairs at George Washington University.

We never really understood why he loved Putin so much and why he tried to develop such a close relationship with someone who is clearly an adversary and against everything the United States stands for.

Some allegations about ties between Mr. Trump and his allies and Russia have proven exaggerated or fizzled over time, but the topic continues to be the subject of considerable public scrutiny, including after departure. by Donald Trump.

The FBI and special counsel Robert Mueller spent several years investigating whether Russia collaborated with the 2016 Trump campaign to tip the scales in favor of the outcome of the election.

Although investigators did not establish a criminal conspiracy, they found that the Trump campaign welcomed Russian help during the election and that the Russian government felt it would benefit from a Trump presidency .

In 2018, after meeting with Mr. Putin in Helsinki, Mr. Trump memorably and publicly questioned his own intelligence agencies’ conclusion that Russia had interfered in the election.

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I have great confidence in my intelligence services, but I can tell you that President Putin was extremely strong and powerful in his denial todayMr. Trump said at the time. He added: He just said it wasn’t Russia. I will say this: I see no reason why that would be the case.

Quite intelligent for invading Ukraine

More recently, Donald Trump called Vladimir Putin a quite intelligent for invading Ukraine and praised Russia’s military record in historic conflicts, saying last month: As someone told me the other day, they beat Hitler, they beat Napoleon. That’s what they do. They fight. And it’s not pleasant.

The book, which also says Mr. Trump secretly sent Mr. Putin COVID-19 testing machines at the height of the pandemic, does not describe the content of their conversations.

Trump campaign spokesman Steven Cheung denied they took place, calling the famous Watergate journalist’s book a work of a truly demented and deranged man who suffers from a debilitating case of Trump Derangement Syndrome.

Mr. Trump complained at a campaign event on Wednesday: I had to spend years talking to Russia, Russia, Russia, and they knew it was wrong.

A Kremlin spokesperson also denied that the calls took place.

Details of the book have reignited debate over the Logan Act, a 1799 law that prohibits U.S. citizens from attempting to intervene in disputes or controversies between the United States and foreign powers without government approval.

The law has resulted in only two criminal cases, none since the 1850s and neither resulting in a criminal conviction. Former presidents, from Richard Nixon to Jimmy Carter to Bill Clinton, have held meetings with international figures after leaving the White House.