In 2017, Trump Asked Putin’s Opinion on Military Aid to Ukraine: Details

Former U.S. President Donald Trump in 2017, during his first personal meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Hamburg, asked for his opinion on military aid to Ukraine, The New York Times (NYT) reports, citing its sources. According to them, the Russian president expressed opposition.

As reported by NYT, during the meeting on July 7, 2017, Donald Trump told Vladimir Putin that the White House was considering the issue of providing military assistance to Ukraine. He reportedly asked the Russian president, “What do you think?” In response, Putin said it would be a mistake, as Kyiv would increasingly ask for more assistance, according to NYT.

The newspaper notes that Rex Tillerson, who served as U.S. Secretary of State from 2017 to 2018, urged American administration officials after that conversation to “work on changing the president’s opinion regarding Ukraine.”

On September 24, Donald Trump stated that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky wanted the Democratic Party to win the U.S. November elections to receive financial support from them again. He referred to the Ukrainian president as a “great dealer.” Three days later, during their meeting, Donald Trump declared that he had very good relations with Vladimir Putin and could quickly resolve the conflict if he won.