Trump tries to rewrite history on being ‘fooled' by Putin
Trump has criticized the Russian president in unprecedented terms in recent days and signaled he'll send vital weapons to Ukraine. But he's also given Putin plenty more time – 50 days – before really dropping the hammer with economic punishment.
To the extent this shift is genuine, though, it's coming with a healthy dose of rewriting history.
Repeatedly this week, Trump has suggested he never really trusted Putin.
'He's fooled a lot of people,' Trump said Monday at the White House, adding: 'He fooled Clinton, Bush, Obama, Biden. He didn't fool me.'
The president echoed the point in a new interview with the BBC. Asked whether he trusted Putin, he reportedly paused for a bit.
'I trust almost nobody, to be honest with you,' he eventually responded.
That pause would seem instructive. In fact, Trump has repeatedly vouched for Putin over the years and even in recent months, despite all the evidence undermining his credibility.
Just five months ago, Trump said he did trust Putin on the most central of issues – whether he wanted peace in Ukraine. Trump now suggests the Russian president isn't serious about that prospect.
'I believe he wants peace,' Trump said February 14, adding: 'I mean, I know him very well. Yeah, I think he wants peace. I think he would tell me if he didn't. … I trust him on this subject.'
It was a pretty stunning and full-throated testimonial for the former KGB officer.
Two weeks later, Trump was asked about the prospect of Putin violating the terms of any deal that might be reached – something Putin has done plenty of times done before. He dismissed the idea.
'I think he'll keep his word,' Trump said, before suggesting he had an affinity with Putin because both had to endure the Russia investigation during his first term.
And asked by Time magazine in April whether Putin could make peace, Trump signaled it was likely.
'I think Putin will' make peace, he said.
The US president is singing a very different tune today. In fact, he said Monday that on three or four occasions, he felt they had a deal in place, only for Putin to pull the rug out from beneath them and continue to hit Ukraine hard.
(Despite these comments, Trump has opted to give Putin more time before implementing secondary sanctions on countries that buy Russian oil.)
The administration's trust in its negotiations with Putin was also what set off February's Oval Office blow-up with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.
After Vice President JD Vance signaled the administration preferred 'diplomacy' to chest-thumping, Zelensky interjected to ask Vance whether Putin could be trusted to actually engage faithfully in talks.
'We signed ceasefire' in 2019, Zelensky said. 'Ceasefire. All of them told me that he will never go [into Ukraine]. We signed him with gas contract – gas contract, yes, but after that, he broken the ceasefire, he killed our people, and he didn't exchange prisoners. We signed the exchange of prisoners, but he didn't do it.'
Zelensky continued: 'What kind of diplomacy, JD, you are speaking about?'
Vance called it 'disrespectful' for the Ukrainian leader to litigate this issue in front of the media, and things quickly went off the rails.
Ultimately, Trump was asked in that meeting what happens if Putin violates the terms of a ceasefire, and he again blanched at the suggestion.
' 'What if' anything?' Trump said. 'What if a bomb drops on your head right now, OK? What if they break it? I don't know. They broke it with Biden because Biden, they didn't respect him. They didn't respect Obama. They respect me.'
Four and a half months later, Trump says Putin tells him very nice things during their phone calls but doesn't back that up with actions.
'I go home, I tell the first lady, 'You know, I spoke to Vladimir today, and we had a wonderful conversation,' ' Trump said Monday. 'She said, 'Oh really? Another city was just hit.' '
And this is a familiar tale. Trump has often vouched for adversarial foreign strongmen who have very different agendas, and sometimes that's blown up in his face.
Early in 2020, Trump repeatedly vouched for China and President Xi Jinping's control over the Covid outbreak. He dismissed the idea that China was covering up the spread and praised its transparency, reportedly rejecting the idea that he should apply more pressure.
Trump made these comments despite China's history of covering up such events and internal administration concerns that it was happening again.
Soon, when the outbreak took hold in the United States, Trump would turn to blaming China for it. The White House accused China of the same cover-up Trump had cast doubt upon.
Trump has also repeatedly defended Putin in the past, particularly his denials of Russian interference in the 2016 US election. He has even sided with Putin over his own intelligence community.
During a press conference with Putin in Helsinki, Finland, in 2018, Trump said he didn't 'see any reason why' Russia would have interfered.
'I have great confidence in my intelligence people, but I will tell you that President Putin was extremely strong and powerful in his denial today,' Trump said.
He later claimed he had misspoken and that he meant to say he didn't see any reason why Russia wouldn't have done this. But the president has gone on to repeatedly cast doubt on the idea that Russia interfered, even as a bipartisan Senate investigation backed up the intelligence community's findings.
Another politician might look at all this and ask themselves whether they invested too much faith in Xi and Putin. But Trump instead suggests that it's other American presidents who have been the dupes.
If you look closely, though, you can see Trump tacitly acknowledging his own miscalculation. He has repeatedly pointed to how Putin says nice things but then doesn't stand by them. Even in his anecdote about the first lady, Trump cast himself as seemingly too focused on the things Putin says to him rather than actions on the ground.
It's normal in diplomacy to say nice things about your counterparts, even if you don't believe them. But usually you do that a lot more with allies than adversaries.
On some level, you're lending your credibility and legitimacy to someone who might not reward it. In Putin's case, there was plenty of reason to believe that might ultimately be the case.
And here we are.

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


New York Post
6 minutes ago
- New York Post
Heavily armored ‘Golf Force One' debuts as it trails Trump on the Scottish links less than a year after assassination attempt
President Trump's security team has debuted what appears to be a heavily armored golf cart 10 months after a would-be assassin aimed an SKS-style rifle toward him at his West Palm Beach tee resort. As the president played at the Trump Turnberry course in South Ayrshire, Scotland, this weekend, an imposing, apparently heavily fortified black vehicle followed close behind — with security experts saying it bears all the hallmarks of an armor-reinforced golf cart in the mold of Trump's official limo, a k a 'The Beast.' Trump drove a standard white golf cart as he played, but the bulky silhouette of the latest addition to his security fleet — which appears to be a modified Polaris Ranger XP — stood out like a sore thumb on the course. 7 A heavily armored golf car seen following President Trump during a round on his Trump Turnberry course in South Ayrshire, Scotland on July 26, 2025. Stuart Wallace/Shutterstock 7 Trump waving from a traditional golf cart at Turnberry on July 27, 2025. AFP via Getty Images 'Just looking at the front windscreen, that looks armored,' said Gary Relf, director of Armoured Car Services, to The Telegraph. Relf said that while it's difficult to ascertain exactly which elements have been reinforced, noting companies such as his often remove and discreetly replace nearly every interior element with armor plating, the vehicle's darkened front windscreen featuring black banding is a dead giveaway that something major is afoot with it. 'From those photos, that is 100% armored,' he told the outlet. 'The windscreen is a giveaway, as are the side panels, doors and the large panel at the rear above the load tray.' He said the vehicle appeared to be kitted out for 'defensive, not offensive' purposes and claimed the tinted windows could indicate a robust transparent armor has been added. 7 According to experts, the new armored cart appears to be modeled after Trump's official limousine — known as 'The Beast.' TOLGA AKMEN/EPA/Shutterstock 7 The new special golf cart comes after an assassination attempt from suspect Ryan Routh last September on one of Trump's golf courses in Florida. Getty Images 'The thicker the transparent armoring, the more tinted the window looks,' he said. Relf said it was likely the modifications would likely be designed to keep the vehicle as secure as possible while remaining lightweight enough to avoid damaging grass on the course. A Secret Service spokesman wouldn't confirm or deny whether the cart is armored or part of Trump's security apparatus, telling the outlet that the agency doesn't discuss the specific means and methods it deploys to protect the president. 7 Police snipers positioned on the roof of the Trump Turnberry hotel on July 27, 2025. Photo by7 A sniper on the Turnberry course near other golfers. AFP via Getty Images But stepped-up hardware to protect Trump on the golf course would not be unexpected given his surviving a pair of assassination attempts last year. On Sept. 15, Ryan Routh, 59, trained a rifle styled after a Soviet-designed semiautomatic at Trump's security detail as the president walked along the fifth hole at the Trump International Golf Club in Florida. Agents spotted Routh during a sweep of the sixth hole, where the suspect had obscured his location in heavy brush some 400 yards from the president, and fired a shot at him, at which point he ditched his weapon and fled in a Nissan SUV. 7 Trump taking a swing during his Sunday golf round. Getty Images Less than an hour later, Routh was apprehended during a traffic stop and charged with the attempted assassination of Trump. Two months earlier, Trump survived another assassination attempt at a campaign rally in Butler, Pa., carried out by 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks. Crooks perched on the rooftop of a building just outside the Butler fairgrounds and opened fire with an AR-style rifle, nicking Trump's ear, seriously wounding an audience member and killing former firefighter Corey Comperatore. Crooks was taken out by a counter-sniper team moments after firing.


New York Post
6 minutes ago
- New York Post
EU suspends $1.7B in aid to Ukraine after Zelensky curbs watchdog agencies
The European Union is freezing $1.7 billion in aid to Ukraine because President Volodymyr Zelensky approved a bill curbing the war-torn nation's top anti-corruption agencies. The EU said it is withholding more than a third of its funding meant to reward Ukraine for good governance standards after Zelensky signed the controversial bill last week, according to the New York Times on Saturday. The new law gives a politically appointed Ukrainian prosecutor general more power over Kyiv's National Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU) and the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor's Office (SAPO). Advertisement While Zelensky quickly also put measures into place to ensure the agencies' independence after national outcry — the first wartime protests against his administration — concerns remain over his commitment to route out the corruption that has plagued Ukraine for decades. 5 Protests erupt in Kyiv last week after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky approved a bill curbing the nation's top anti-corruption agencies. Getty Images 5 Zelensky quickly put measures in place to strengthen the agencies' independence following mass backlash in Ukraine and around the world. Getty Images The EU established its Ukraine Facility fund last year to reward Kyiv, pledging nearly $60 million over three years to help its war recovery efforts and prepare the country to enter the bloc. Advertisement But Kyiv has fallen short of meeting the EU's standards, with European officials slamming last Wednesday's rush legislation. The EU's decision to withhold some of the funds from Ukraine is not final and that the money pledge can be restored as long as Ukraine meets its requirements, officials said. Marta Kos, the EU's commissioner for expansion, said the bloc was 'seriously concerned' over Ukraine's move to inject political influence into the two agencies tasked with prosecuting corruption at the highest level. Advertisement 5 Last week's protest was the first of its kind since Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022. REUTERS 5 Critics demand Ukraine keep its vow to eliminate corruption in Kyiv, a promise made during the 2014 'Revolution of Dignity.' AFP via Getty Images The NABU and SAPO were established after Ukraine's 'Revolution of Dignity' in 2014, when leaders promised the public to weed out decades of corruption in Kyiv after ousting pro-Russian President Viktor Yanukovych. Zelensky had vowed to keep the anti-corruption efforts going through his administration, but his criticism over the agencies grew louder when they began investigating and charging people inside his inner circle, including former Deputy Prime Minister Oleksiy Chernyshov. Advertisement The president initially claimed that a tighter leash was needed against the NABU and SAPO to rid the two agencies of 'Russian influence' and to address why some cases have been stalled for years. 5 Opponents say internal corruption is hindering Ukraine's ability to defend itself against the Russian invasion. Global Images Ukraine via Getty Images But thousands of Ukrainians then took to the streets to demand the NABU and SAPO remain independent, claiming that the rampant corruption in Kyiv is hurting the nation's ability to defend itself against the ongoing Russian invasion. British Prime Minister Keir Starmer was among the world leaders who called Zelensky to roll back the bill and ensure the corruption issues are addressed. Kyiv also has until Thursday to appoint a head of its Economic Security Bureau to continue receiving assistance from the International Monetary Fund (IMF). The IMF had vowed to provide Ukraine with $15.6 billion in aid to be distributed over four years as long as Kyiv moves forward with its anti-corruption campaign. Zelensky had previously refused to appoint Oleksandr Tsyvinskyi, the man who led the case against Chernyshov, as the head of the bureau despite a nomination from an independent commission. The position remains open, with no word yet on who would fill it.


CNBC
7 minutes ago
- CNBC
U.S. and China to resume tariff talks on Monday in effort to extend truce
Senior U.S. and Chinese negotiators meet in Stockholm on Monday to tackle longstanding economic disputes at the center of the countries' trade war, aiming to extend a truce keeping sharply higher tariffs at bay. China is facing an Aug. 12 deadline to reach a durable tariff agreement with President Donald Trump's administration, after Beijing and Washington reached a preliminary deal in June to end weeks of escalating tit-for-tat tariffs. Without an agreement, global supply chains could face renewed turmoil from duties exceeding 100%. The Stockholm talks, led by U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng, take place a day after European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen met Trump at his golf course in Scotland to clinch a deal that would see a 15% baseline tariff on most EU goods. Trade analysts on both sides of the Pacific say the discussions in the Swedish capital are unlikely to produce any breakthroughs but could prevent further escalation and help create conditions for Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping to meet later this year. Previous U.S.-China trade talks in Geneva and London in May and June focused on bringing U.S. and Chinese retaliatory tariffs down from triple-digit levels and restoring the flow of rare earth minerals halted by China and Nvidia H20 AI chips and other goods halted by the United States. So far, the talks have not delved into broader economic issues. They include U.S. complaints that China's state-led, export-driven model is flooding world markets with cheap goods, and Beijing's complaints that U.S. national security export controls on tech goods seek to stunt Chinese growth. "Stockholm will be the first meaningful round of U.S.-China trade talks," said Bo Zhengyuan, Shanghai-based partner at China consultancy firm Plenum. Trump has been successful in pressuring some other trading partners, including Japan, Vietnam and the Philippines, into preliminary deals accepting higher U.S. tariffs of 15% to 20%. Analysts say the U.S.-China negotiations are far more complex and will require more time. China's grip on the global market for rare earth minerals and magnets, used in everything from military hardware to car windshield wiper motors, has proved to be an effective leverage point on U.S. industries. In the background of the talks is speculation about a possible meeting between Trump and Xi in late October. Trump has said he will decide soon whether to visit China in a landmark trip to address trade and security tensions. A new flare-up of tariffs and export controls would likely derail any plans for a meeting with Xi. "The Stockholm meeting is an opportunity to start laying the groundwork for a Trump visit to China," said Wendy Cutler, vice president at the Asia Society Policy Institute. Bessent has already said he wants to work out an extension of the Aug. 12 deadline to prevent tariffs snapping back to 145% on the U.S. side and 125% on the Chinese side. Still, China is likely to request a reduction of the multi-layered U.S. tariffs, which total 55% on most goods, and further easing of U.S. high-tech export controls, analysts said. Beijing has argued that such purchases would help reduce the U.S. trade deficit with China, which reached $295.5 billion in 2024. China is currently facing a 20% tariff related to the U.S. fentanyl crisis, a 10% reciprocal tariff, and 25% duties on most industrial goods imposed during Trump's first term. Bessent has also said he would discuss the need for China to rebalance its economy away from exports toward domestic consumer demand. The shift would require China to put an end to a protracted property crisis and boost social safety nets to encourage household spending. Michael Froman, a former U.S. trade representative during former President Barack Obama's administration, said such a shift has been a goal of U.S. policymakers for two decades. "Can we effectively use tariffs to get China to fundamentally change their economic strategy? That remains to be seen," said Froman, now president of the Council on Foreign Relations think-tank.