What did Trump talk about with Putin those five times? . . . Ukraine? NATO?

[skip fox]

During his presidency, Trump met with Putin five times and there is no record of what was discussed.

We know what was on Putin's mind, even back then.

We know Trump was undercutting NATO.

This year we know that when Putin was on the threshold of invasion and trotted out his excuse (declaring portions of Ukraine independent), Trump immediately called him "genius" and labelled his moves "savvy."


And during his presidency, did Trump constantly complain about NATO member countries putting too little into their military budgets in order to set up an excuse to abandon them when Putin started attacking, like he said he would do with Moldova?

[skip fox]

1. The five times (Peter Baker in NYT, 1/5/19):

"The first time they met was in Germany. President Trump took his interpreter’s notes afterward and ordered him not to disclose what he heard to anyone. Later that night, at a dinner, Mr. Trump pulled up a seat next to President Vladimir V. Putin to talk without any American witnesses at all."

"Their third encounter was in Vietnam when Mr. Trump seemed to take Mr. Putin’s word that he had not interfered in American elections. A formal summit meeting followed in Helsinki, Finland, where the two leaders kicked out everyone but the interpreters. Most recently, they chatted in Buenos Aires after Mr. Trump said they would not meet because of Russian aggression."

[empedocles]

7. There were phone calls between traitortrumputin, and others.

[Seems that Intelligence sources have a fairk amount of information of what trump and putin talked about, one way or another. Powerful, frightening aricle below].


"The calls caused former top Trump deputies -- including national security advisers H.R. McMaster and John Bolton, Defense Secretary James Mattis, Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, and White House chief of staff John Kelly, as well as intelligence officials -- to conclude that the President was often "delusional," as two sources put it, in his dealings with foreign leaders. The sources said there was little evidence that the President became more skillful or competent in his telephone conversations with most heads of state over time. Rather, he continued to believe that he could either charm, jawbone or bully almost any foreign leader into capitulating to his will, and often pursued goals more attuned to his own agenda than what many of his senior advisers considered the national interest.
Congress demands answers from Trump administration on Russia bounty intelligence
Congress demands answers from Trump administration on Russia bounty intelligence
These officials' concerns about the calls, and particularly Trump's deference to Putin, take on new resonance with reports the President may have learned in March that Russia had offered the Taliban bounties to kill US troops in Afghanistan -- and yet took no action. CNN's sources said there were calls between Putin and Trump about Trump's desire to end the American military presence in Afghanistan but they mentioned no discussion of the supposed Taliban bounties.
'' . . .The calls caused former top Trump deputies -- including national security advisers H.R. McMaster and John Bolton, Defense Secretary James Mattis, Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, and White House chief of staff John Kelly, as well as intelligence officials -- to conclude that the President was often "delusional," as two sources put it, in his dealings with foreign leaders. The sources said there was little evidence that the President became more skillful or competent in his telephone conversations with most heads of state over time. Rather, he continued to believe that he could either charm, jawbone or bully almost any foreign leader into capitulating to his will, and often pursued goals more attuned to his own agenda than what many of his senior advisers considered the national interest.

Congress demands answers from Trump administration on Russia bounty intelligence

These officials' concerns about the calls, and particularly Trump's deference to Putin, take on new resonance with reports the President may have learned in March that Russia had offered the Taliban bounties to kill US troops in Afghanistan -- and yet took no action. CNN's sources said there were calls between Putin and Trump about Trump's desire to end the American military presence in Afghanistan but they mentioned no discussion of the supposed Taliban bounties. . . . ''


https://www.cnn.com/2020/06/29/politics/trump-phone-calls-national-security-concerns/index.html

[Ferrets are Cool]

2. Putin really farked up by not invading while tfg was in office.

The US would have given our full backing.

[skip fox]

3. Putin was likely waiting to invade until after Trump won in 2020,

then Trump couldn't be harmed by the electorate.

[Ferrets are Cool]

5. Well, that didn't work either.

[bucolic_frolic]

4. Nah. They talked looting the citizenry of their respective countries.

Nazi stuff. The chaos of war is useful for that.

[skip fox]

6. BUT . . . if we found out they discussed Putin's plans for Ukraine/NATO

that would put a stake in the heart of Trump's future plans to run for a second term and irreparably discredit MAGA.

[empedocles]

8. Powerful point

[Novara]

9. I don't think so. His followers are a cult and they'd follow him no matter what

The fact that a good chunk of republicans even now defend Putin tells you exactly that.

There is NOTHING that will discredit the MAGAts.

[GoCubsGo]

10. I'm pretty sure Putin did all the talking.

All Trump said was, "Yes, sir. I'll do what you want. Just don't let anyone see all the dirt you have on me. Especially Melania." I'm sure one of Putin's marching orders was to undercut NATO and help in his attempts to continue his colonization war into Ukraine.. Another was to destroy his own country's democracy.

[Patterson]

11. What was in the letter Rand Paul hand delivered for Putin?