Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump, while speaking with X owner Elon Musk on the billionaire’s social media site on Aug. 12, said Russia wouldn't have invaded Ukraine if U.S. President Joe Biden weren't in office.
Musk told Trump he's made "an excellent point." Musk officially endorsed Trump on the same day GOP nominee was shot at a campaign rally in Pennsylvania.
Musk had planned to host Donald Trump for an interview “Live on X” (formerly Twitter Spaces) at 8 p.m. ET. However, the social media platform experienced glitches, preventing many users from listening to the interview.
Musk later posted that there was a "massive DDOS (distributed denial of service) attack on X" and mentioned efforts to shut it down, adding that he might continue the interview with a smaller audience. The interview started about 45 minutes late.
Trump has been saying that he "knows" Putin and "gets along" with North Korea's ruler Kim Jong Un.
"They're smart and they're vicious. I got along with (Russia's President Vladimir) Putin very well, and he respected me," Trump said, adding that he used to speak to Putin often. "We would talk about Ukraine. It was the apple of his eye. But I told him don't do it," he claimed.
Known for his longstanding public sympathy for Putin and his repeated criticism of U.S. aid to Ukraine, Trump claimed during his presidential campaign that he would end the war within 24 hours if elected, though he refused to provide details of his plan.
During the debates with U.S. President Joe Biden, Trump rejected Putin's ceasefire terms, which demanded that Ukraine surrender four regions partially occupied by Russia and abandon its effort to join NATO, calling them "not acceptable."
However, earlier media reports indicated that Trump privately suggested ending Russia’s war by pressuring Ukraine to cede Crimea and Donbas to Moscow. He also said publicly in May 2023 that he would not guarantee continued defense assistance to Ukraine if he won the presidential election.
In April, Trump said that Ukraine's survival is important to the United States. This statement came just before a vote on a $61 billion aid package for Ukraine.
Trump's vice-presidential pick, J.D. Vance repeatedly disparaged Ukraine and voiced his unwillingness to continue U.S. support in leaked text messages with far-right conspiracy theorist Charles Johnson, the Washington Post reported on Aug. 7.
In text messages revealed by Johnson to the Washington Post, Vance remarked in October 2023, "Dude, I won't even take calls from Ukraine." This conversation took place as congressional Republicans began obstructing an aid package for Ukraine, resulting in a standoff that persisted for several months.
Trump also noted that he allegedly counselled Putin against invading Ukraine: "I told him, 'don't do it. You can't do it, Vladimir. He said 'no way', and I said 'way'," Trump added.
Oleg Sukhov
