Donald Trump claimed during a private fundraiser last year he had threatened Russian President Vladimir Putin with bombing "the sh*t out of Moscow" if he attacked Ukraine, CNN reported on July 8, citing an obtained audio.
"With Putin I said, 'If you go into Ukraine, I’m going to bomb the sh*t out of Moscow. I’m telling you I have no choice,'" Trump told a group of donors in 2024, according to CNN. It was not immediately clear at what time the alleged conversation between the two leaders took place.
"And then (Putin) goes, like, 'I don't believe you.' But he believed me 10%." Trump claimed he issued a similar warning to Chinese President Xi Jinping if he attempted to invade Taiwan.
U.S. President Trump has repeatedly claimed during his campaign trail that Russia's all-out invasion of Ukraine in 2022 would have never happened if he were president at the time, laying the blame on ex-President Joe Biden.
Trump previously served as president from 2017 to 2021, during which time Russia was already occupying Crimea and waging war against Ukraine in Donbas.
While initially pledging to broker a swift peace deal between Kyiv and Moscow and boasting of warm ties with Putin, Trump has more recently adopted a more critical tone toward the Russian leader as peace talks stall and Russian aerial strikes escalate.
"We get a lot of bullsh*t thrown at us by Putin," Trump said during a cabinet meeting on July 8. The U.S. president also signaled support for a major Senate sanctions bill against Russia and, reportedly, air defense supplies for Ukraine.
These developments contrast with a recent pause by the Pentagon on military aid shipments, including Patriot interceptors, heading for Ukraine, and with Trump's earlier reluctance to exert additional pressure on Moscow.
Russian forces continue to escalate aerial strikes on Ukrainian cities, most recently hitting the western city of Lutsk and other areas overnight on July 9. Kyiv has urged its Western partners to step up support, namely in terms of sanctions and the provision of new air defenses.
Read also: Western city suffers ‘most massive’ strike of the war as Russia launches missiles, drones at Ukraine
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