Donald Trump and Volodymyr Zelenskyy have sat down for a face-to-face talk in the opulent halls of a Vatican basilica to discuss a possible ceasefire, after which the US president accused his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, of not wanting to “stop the war”.
The White House described Trump’s meeting with the Ukrainian leader before Pope Francis’s funeral as “very productive”, while Zelenskyy said on X that the talk with the US president was symbolic and had the “potential to become historic, if we achieve joint results”.
It was the first time that Zelenskyy and Trump had met face to face after a frosty February encounter in the White House where Trump and the US vice-president, JD Vance, berated the Ukrainian leader and accused him of ingratitude for US aid.
Something odd is happening with the right, seems like they’re trying to hedge their bets for blowback.
Trump definitely know this all along, to say this now seems like damage control.
Then earlier this week Rogan calling out the deportations to El Salvador without a trial, saying it was an overcorrection to the left that has gone too far.
I wonder if the American people will buy it.
Its weirder than that, had someone on lemmy try to convince me that deportations, purity tests and fascism are all far left policies. Its like they’re trying to shift all their own shit onto some imaginary other.
It’s amazing how this man’s brain is so feeble that he just fully believes what the last person he met with him tells him.
I need to see this play out like a heist movie. Two opposing advisors are battling each other to get their idea in his head for the big speech. They get into some zany hijinks trying to be the last to speak to him. Some real spy vs spy stuff.
Inception of the stupid. Written, Directed and Produced by the Coen Brothers.
tapping me along
Anyone got a trump-to-english conversion for this one?
“Tapping me along” made me imagine someone tapping a golf ball. Nudging it, but not making a big swing, it could be indicative of a subtle influence.
Trump may not know a lot about a lot, but he spends enough time golfing to potentially use a metaphor from it. On the other hand, I’ve never golfed (except the mini kind), so I could be way off.
When you get tapped along, it’ll make your covfefe hamberders yippy.
Ever see a really well trained dog where all you have to do is tap the spot beside you and they bound over to you and dutifully sit in that spot?
I think maybe he meant “nudging me along”? I imagine Putin there at every step, reassuring Trump that he should just wait and see, that he’ll do all work and make Trump look like the big man who negotiated a historic peace deal.
No peace deal means no publicity for the peace deal, so now Trump is getting worried because he tanked the global economy with nothing to show for it.
Is he seriously just realizing Vlad doesn’t want to end the war? I really can’t tell when he’s an idiot or colluding these days
In his mind he’s ~6’ 3", ~230 lbs with an IQ of 150.
He truly thinks that world leaders look up to him and that he’s playing everyone else.
Vlad wants to end the war. On his terms though, cause he knows he can get it.
With Trump yes his chances have certainly increased. Though the EU looks more willing to help Ukraine than I expected, which is great.
Chances have been looking good for russia. I don’t believe Europe has the capacity to deal with russians by themselves, they’d really have to ramp up manufacturing.
What is the strategic advantage for Russia for continuing the war?
If I had to guess (my knowledge is a couple of geopolitics books), I’d say Russia wants to create a rift between East and West that is beneficial to China as well. China helped Russia build a quantum computer recently and there are more clues that they’re getting even closer together. I think Russia wants to shake the current world order.
Why does maintaining a war, which consumes resources, laborers, and focus/attention, and also creates security threats, be beneficial to to Russia for shaking the current world order?
Russia has been cut out from the West, it couldn’t even participate in the Olympics. So it got closer to China. Its economy is resilient despite the war. Russia has also been the leading country in the BRICS in regard to finding an alternative to the dollar together with Brazil. And it is working to ditch SWIFT (the banking system). So I’d say Russia is pretty interested into getting away from the West, at least economically and politically.
Why does staying at war on Ukraine advance these aims?
Because it deepens the rift. Donald Trump as president also helps Putin a lot, as the russian president have said before, since Trump also wants to shake things up. As could be seen by his tariff policies.
How does continuing the war deepen the rift? Clearly it strengthens the resolve of European countries to develop their militaries and build alliances.
Removed by mod
It’s for Putin he can’t possibly admit defeat. Plus they’re probably banking on the US abandoning Ukraine and the EU not mobilizing aid fast enough. Ukraine is in a rougher spot than they’re letting on, though victory is certainly still possible.
So you’re saying that Putin is behaving irrationally and emotionally based on ego?
I mean…I’m sure that factors in…? But I certainly didn’t boil it down to something that simplistic. There are a lot of reasons he can’t admit defeat.
Is it because Russia hasn’t been defeated, maybe?
Didn’t stop them from retreating from Afghanistan did it?
What’s your deal?
You said Putin cannot admit defeat for some reason and I asked if the reason he cannot admit defeat is because Russia has not been defeated yet.
A rare lucid moment
I wonder [not to give him any credit] if DJT would be a better president if he were surrounded by actual decent people that were earnest/honest. It feels like it could be in the realm of possibility that he’s treating the Ukraine/Russia conflict the way he has simply because the people around him are only giving him a specific narrative surrounding it. Either intentionally, incidentally, due to incompetence or sycophantic attempts to “please” trump.
Maybe this is the first time getting it from Ukraine’s point of view, unfiltered.
Doesn’t change/nor justify his shitty behavior, but… it makes a kind of sense.
It wouldn’t surprise me. We are a product of our environment, and Trump is a very clear example of that. He tends to mimic and amplify whoever he thinks is the strongest/most powerful around him. He’s a LeFou in constant search of a Gaston.
Trump should know how to recognize tapping people along, it’s one of his signature moves, right up there with tax fraud, stiffing creditors and strategic bankruptcy.
Rape bruh
Treason and a riot
Scene: DJT standing awkwardly at a table. Beside him, sitting on the floor is Vladimir Putin with his Entire Arm shoved up DJT’s ass.
DJT: I’m starting to think Putin might be manipulating me.
The human embodiment of Internet Explorer, everyone.
He’s Putin me on!
He’s a sharp one, the ol’ Donny!
He promised me a reach around!
Holy shit, he might have finally gotten through to that dunce in some small way.
ROFLMAO
I want to offer a long history of how everyone saw this coming but I think “LOL” is the best response
