Trump thinks he and Putin are friends, but Putin doesn’t see it that way.
Former Trump adviser John Bolton says Russian leader Vladimir Putin is manipulating Trump. Bolton, who was Trump’s National Security Adviser from 2018 to 2019, believes Putin is trying to influence Trump during negotiations about the war in Ukraine.
Bolton warned that Putin is using tricks to get what he wants from Trump. Speaking to The Sun, he said, “Trump thinks he and Putin are friends. That’s not what Putin thinks.”
Bolton also said that Trump admires powerful leaders like Putin, China’s Xi Jinping, and North Korea’s Kim Jong-un because they have total control over their countries. “They’re big guys, and Trump wants to be a big guy too,” Bolton added.
Bolton’s comments come as Trump delayed military aid to Ukraine after a tense meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. Trump later said he found it easier to deal with Russia than Ukraine.
“Putin wants to end the war… and I think he’s going to be more generous than he has to be,” Trump said from the Oval Office. He also claimed that making a deal with Russia might be easier than negotiating with Ukraine.
Trump has promised to end the war in 100 days and has been working on a deal that would give Ukraine economic benefits in exchange for peace talks with Russia. However, Ukraine wants stronger security guarantees, and European countries have stepped in to support them.
Bolton claims Putin has been influencing Trump for years. He recalled a phone call in 2019 where Putin tried to change Trump’s opinion of Zelensky. Bolton believes this call may have led Trump to criticize the Ukrainian leader.
Last week, Trump called Zelensky a “dictator” and a “modestly successful comedian.”
Bolton pointed out that Trump openly trusts Putin, saying the Russian leader wants peace after three years of war. “You don’t call your friends dictators,” he told The Sun.
Bolton also warned that Putin sees Trump as someone he can manipulate. “Putin would love to sign a Ukraine peace deal with Trump because he thinks he can get what he wants,” he said.
According to Bolton, Trump has already made key concessions that benefit Russia, such as backing away from restoring Ukraine’s full sovereignty and blocking Ukraine from joining NATO—both decisions that favor the Kremlin.
