Trump's unpredictable reversal on the responsibility of Ukraine in the war

Ukraine “Never should have started” war against Russia, and should “Find an arrangement”Donald Trump said on February 18, during a press conference since his residence in Mar-A-Lago (Florida). The White House tenant took the opportunity to scratch his Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelensky, calling him as “Dictator” and “Modest success actor” who made a “A terrible job” at the head of his country.

This question of kyiv amazed the international community and in particular its NATO allies, almost three years after the start of an attempted invasion of Ukraine by Russia on February 24, 2022. Confirmed: according to the Financial Timesthe United States is opposed for the first time that a joint declaration of the countries of the G7 qualifies Russia as“Aggressor”.

This is a spectacular turnaround for Donald Trump. Little interested in the conflict, he had long stood in a neutral speech, which had mainly served him to lever to discredit his political rival Joe Biden.

References to Ukraine tinged with domestic policy

According to the Trump Twitter Archive site, which agrees its publications on Twitter social networks and then X and Truth Social, he spoke of war in Ukraine than 51 times since 2022most of the time to bring it back to American political considerations.

When the war broke out, Donald Trump is crossing the desert and raised his defeat against Joe Biden two years earlier. From the evening of February 24, he regret From Fox News a “Invasion that would not have arrived if the election [américaine] had not been stolen ”. He nevertheless condemns neither Ukraine nor Russia, which according to him would have been “Satisfied with a song” of territory, but would have been encouraged to go further because of “Incompetence and stupidity” of the Biden administration.

Then he blames, each time he can, Joe Biden, who could not have been respected by Vladimir Putin. And when he does not target the Democratic president, he aims for his vice-president Kamala Harris, his rival for the presidential election. “She was sent [en février 2022] To try to prevent [la guerre]Putin attacked three days later “he castigates in August 2024.

Trumpist software is pragmatic. Already, before 2022, when he spoke of Ukraine, it was to accuse nepotism Joe Biden, whose son Hunter was present on the board of directors of a Ukrainian gas company, at the time when he was vice -Pres -president of Barack Obama.

A pacifist posture long distant from the Kremlin

Customary of conspiratorial theories, whether anti -Vax, climatosceptic or identity, Donald Trump had never taken up Russian propaganda on Ukrainian responsibility: he has never accused Zelensky of Nazism, nor NATO to develop organic weapons in Ukraine, as did the Kremlin.

From 2022 to 2024, Donald Trump's speech on the war in Ukraine is mainly pacifist. He denounces a multiple times a “Tragic waste of human lives” or a “Stupid war that should never have started”without ever trying to make it responsibility for one of the two belligerents. He made a campaign argument very early in: returning to the White House, he would be able to stop this “Horrible war” in “24 hours”he swears in January 2023. His election would prevent a “Third World War”he swears in September 2024.

On the facts, the rare times he comes into detail, he talks about “The attack on Russia”as on July 10, 2024. He also reaffirmed on August 26 and September 4 that Russia has “Invahi” His neighbor, less to blame Vladimir Putin than to point the supposed passivity of Joe Biden.

Zelensky the “commercial”

With Volodymyr Zelensky either, Donald Trump had never shown himself so virulent. Admittedly, the businessman, annoyed by the amount of financial aid granted by his country to Ukraine, qualified in June 2024 the Ukrainian president of “Bigger salesperson in the history of politicians”because “Whenever he comes to our country, he leaves with $ 60 billion”. But in reality, it was Joe Biden that he aims: in his eyes, the Democratic President was guilty of financed a European war in the place of Europeans. He also evokes in warm terms his exchanges in the summer of 2024 with the Ukrainian leader, and a “Very good phone call”after which he reiterates his promise to“Bring peace to the world and finish war”.

Once his election has been acquired, faithful to his campaign promises, Donald Trump first presented himself as a mediator. On December 9, the elected president meeting Volodymyr Zelensky in Paris on the sidelines of the inauguration of Notre-Dame, and call to one “Immediate cease-fire”stressing that Ukraine wants “Find an arrangement and stop this madness”while he “Knows Vladimir well [Poutine] ». Without letting guess that three months later, after meeting the Russian president, he would align himself with his rhetoric.