Russia sanctions on hold: How Trump is continuing to build closer ties with Putin

US President Trump’s support for Ukraine has always been lukewarm. By suspending sanctions, he is making significant concessions to the Russian president. He is also facing massive criticism for this in the US. By Carsten Kühntopp Recently on CNN: James Talarico, the Democratic candidate in Texas for a seat in the US Senate, is talking to members of the public. A student asks him: “Why should we give all that money to Ukraine instead of putting it into our local communities and helping our fellow Texans?” Talarico replies: “We learnt from the Second World War that if we do not stand up to an aggressor in Europe, we will pay the price later. We must strengthen Ukraine and our NATO allies as they stand up to Russian aggression – so that we do not have to do so ourselves.” In a way, he sees this as a cost-saving measure. MAGA movement pro-Russian In the US, it is now mainly the Democrats who are standing by Ukraine. And some Republicans who know that, until Donald Trump entered the scene, their party fought for freedom and democracy. Leading figures in Trump’s MAGA movement, on the other hand, hold pro-Russian views. On Thursday, the President told Newsmax: “If you tell me that (Ukrainian President) Zelenskyy is shelling refineries again – he’s driving up the global price of oil. That’s a disgrace. There are plenty of other targets too.” In any case, the Ukrainian president does not want an agreement to end the war. The events of the past few days show that Trump has switched sides. The US is now buying Russian diesel again, and the White House – according to media reports – has scaled back the Starshield satellite system. Trump denies this, however. Ukraine uses the system to attack Russian targets within Ukraine. “This fits in well with the pattern of US foreign policy” Richard Haass, a former diplomat and member of George W. Bush’s administration, is not surprised. “This fits all too well with the pattern of US foreign policy over the past year and a half with regard to this war. Time and again, we have done things for Russia – and things against Ukraine. This is simply the latest development in this series.” This betrayal will go down in infamy, says the conservative columnist Charlie Sykes. Historian Anne Applebaum notes that Trump’s actions look like an attempt to force Ukraine to surrender. “Putin’s best friend” Phillips O’Brien, also a historian, scoffs that the lies are over – and Trump is now free to be what he has always wanted to be: “Putin’s best friend”; the US is being governed by a “useful idiot” of the Russians. An editorial in the conservative Wall Street Journal speaks of a “moral and strategic mistake” on the part of the President. Former diplomat Haass expresses a similar view: “This makes no sense, neither strategically nor ethically or morally. The United States is moving closer to Russia. This is a moral and strategic bankruptcy for the country.” Private business interests as the motivation? One possible explanation for Trump’s policy towards Russia could be this: for about a year now, there have been repeated reports that Trump is having the Kremlin negotiate joint business deals. Among other things, these involve the sale of assets belonging to Russian oil companies. The beneficiaries would be investors with links to the US President and his family. However, these assets can only be sold if Ukraine does not destroy them. This could explain Trump’s continued pressure on Kyiv to spare Russia’s energy infrastructure. In the past, the President has also repeatedly spoken of the major economic opportunities which, in his view, are available in Russia. Trump appears to have identified Ukraine’s stubborn resistance to being incorporated into Putin’s empire as an obstacle to this.