Trump’s favorite newspaper: President, Putin is the dictator

Donald Trump’s recent rhetoric toward Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has made waves across the globe, including in the US

Many politicians have stood up to POTUS after he dubbed Zelenskyy a dictator and claimed that he enjoys 4% support among Ukrainians. None of this is true, especially the claim that the Ukrainian President is to blame for the war, and is puzzling given that on his first day in the White House, he clearly said that “Russia should’ve never started this war.” Some have said that the change took place after Zelenskyy refused to sign a deal that would give the US effective control of its resources and economy.

Against the backdrop of such statements, Conservative New York Post, owned by media mogul Rupert Murdoch and reportedly read by Donald Trump, published an article by well-known Conservative commentator Douglas Murray titled “Mr. President: Putin is THE dictator and 10 Ukraine-Russia war truths we ignore at our peril”, who often appears on other Conservative media platforms like Piers Morgan Uncensored and Sky News Australia.

The article opens with the statement that while bloodshed in Ukraine must end there are also “the truths against which any deal will be judged and which will define him when the history books are written. To ignore them or not treat them with the gravity they deserve will also have enormous consequences for decades to come.”

Here’s what they are.

1. Vladimir Putin started this war: “And that doesn’t include the other wars he started, like that against the tiny nation of Georgia in 2008. Trump is absolutely right that the war “never had to start.” I believe it is true that it wouldn’t have started if he had been in the Oval Office. But it was Putin, not Zelensky, who started the war.
2. Russia is fighting for conquest: “The Russian Federation invaded Ukraine in 2022. Whatever you think of the country or its leadership, Ukraine is an internationally recognized, sovereign nation. Putin invaded in the hope of devouring the country wholesale. By contrast, Ukraine has absolutely no territorial ambitions in Russia. And remember the brutality of Russia’s actions. Among the multitude of depravities and war crimes committed by Putin’s army has been the abduction of some 20,000 Ukrainian children.“
3. Ukraine is fighting for its independence: “Most Ukrainians do not want to be part of Russia.
4. Ukrainians are not Russians: “Ukrainians and Russians are not “one people — a single whole,” as Putin wrote in a 2021 essay.”
5. Putin is a dictator: “Putin has ruled Russia with an iron KGB fist since coming to power in 1999. He has ruthlessly quashed independent media, ended free and fair elections, crushed civil society and killed his political opponents. And not just inside Russia, but around the world. People who live inside Russia and express any opposition to the war are imprisoned.”
6. Zelensky is not a dictator: “A political outsider, Zelensky won the 2019 presidential election, which was relatively free and fair. He has a 57% approval rating, not the 4% Trump claimed. The Russian ambassador to the UK spent yesterday crowing that he’s “not sure” Zelensky would be re-elected if there were elections today. But we all know one thing for sure. Whether or not Zelensky would be re-elected in Ukraine, Putin will always be re-elected in Russia.”
7. Russia is not a friend of the US: “It is a hostile, nuclear-armed state that resents American power and the world the US has built. It has ever closer relations with China, Iran and North Korea. In fact, all of its main friends are countries that are the biggest foes of America.”
8. Ukraine is a friend of the US: “Ukraine wants to be part of the American-led order. Its people and government are deeply pro-American.”
9. Putin cannot be trusted: “This isn’t just a statement of fact. It is also something that 81% of American voters agree on. Putin has invaded multiple countries in violation of every international treaty. He has interfered in multiple elections in his nearest neighbors. He has violated international agreements, including the INF Treaty with the US. Yet just this week he carried out a massive missile and drone attack against multiple energy facilities in Ukraine. It is almost as though Putin’s word doesn’t count for very much and he doesn’t care if you know it.
10. American aid to Ukraine is not being wasted: “Nobody would argue that Ukraine is a country without corruption. But that does not mean its people and sovereignty should not be protected.We should also remember which country in this war is truly corrupt. Russia is one vast, kleptocratic state, led by Putin and a small cartel of oligarchs who have made themselves among the richest people on Earth. All while keeping most of the Russian population in a state of poverty that would not be believed by most of us in the West. Besides, according to the Department of Defense, some $58 billion out of the $183 billion in Ukraine aid has been spent in America. It is money that has benefited American workers and industries.”