Donald Trump is alleged to have revealed to political donors that he once told Vladimir Putin he would “bomb the s**t out of Moscow” if the Russian leader invaded Ukraine. It’s reported that during a 2024 fundraiser, the now US President told supporters he had a conversation with Putin before the illegal invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
A recording of the audio from the event hears Trump tell a private meeting: “With Putin I said, ‘If you go into Ukraine, I’m going to bomb the sh*t out of Moscow. I’m telling you I have no choice.” But far from being cowed by the American politician’s words, Trump said Putin simply replied: “I don’t believe you.”
Seemingly thinking that his Russian counterpart did put some credence to the threat, Trump added that he thought Putin “believed me 10%”.
At a meeting with a delegation from Israel on Tuesday, Trump said Ukraine was getting “hit very hard” by Russia in recent weeks, despite his efforts to bring the Kremlin to the negotiating table. The US President has become more vocal about feeling unhappy with Putin’s long-running war against his western neighbour.
On Tuesday, Trump expressed his exasperation with Putin, saying, “I’m not happy with him, I can tell you that much right now” as Moscow ramps up attacks in Ukraine with some of the largest missile and drone strikes of the war so far in recent days.
Speaking about a phone call between the two leaders on Thursday the week before, Trump said: “We get a lot of bulls**t thrown at us by Putin, if you want to know the truth, he’s very nice all the time, but it turns out to be meaningless.”
He has threatened, but held off on, imposing new sanctions against Russia’s oil industry to try to prod Putin into peace talks.
Trump also announced that the US would resume providing Ukraine with defensive weapons after the Pentagon announced a surprise pause in some deliveries last week.
Pentagon press secretary Kingsley Wilson denied that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth had acted without consulting the president on the pause.
She said: “It is the job of the Secretary of Defense to make military recommendations to the Commander-in-Chief. Secretary Hegseth provided a framework for the President to evaluate military aid shipments and assess existing stockpiles. This effort was coordinated across government. The Department will continue to give the President robust options regarding military aid to Ukraine, consistent with his goal of bringing this tragic war to an end and putting America first.”
US officials continue to accuse China of resupplying and revamping Russia’s military-industrial sector, allowing it to produce additional weapons with which it can attack Ukraine.
