Once again, Donald Trump is talking about his candidacy as if he had no presidency to which we can refer.
This time, the topic is the construction of Nord Stream 2, a controversial gas pipeline between Russia and Germany. For years, members of both parties had opposed Nord Stream 2, fearing that it would increase Europe's energy dependence on Russia. Trump imposed sanctions on the company building the pipeline in December 2019.The State Department said the pipeline “is a tool Russia is using to support its ongoing aggression against Ukraine.”
Opinion columnist
Granderson Landing Station
LZ Granderson writes about culture, politics, sports, and navigating life in America.
President Biden waived those sanctions in 2021And Trump is using that decision to criticize his vice president, Kamala Harris.
It's true that Biden lifted sanctions, in part to repair the U.S. relationship with Germany, which was strained under the Trump administration. But Biden also did so because the pipeline was 90% complete when he took office. Trump is saying he prevented the pipeline from being built, but the truth is that most of it was built during his tenure in the White House. Moreover, construction on the pipeline resumed in 2020 despite his 2019 sanctions. And Biden imposed A new round of sanctions in 2022.
The real question is not why Biden lifted sanctions in 2021, but rather why Trump waited until late 2019 to act?
The answers are in the pages of the Mueller report, which investigated interference in the 2016 election.
In December 2013, the Trump Organization signed a branding deal for a residential property in Moscow that reportedly earned Trump nearly $20 million.
In February 2014, Russia invaded Ukraine and annexed Crimea.
In March, the United States and its allies responded with severe economic sanctions. As a result, Russia's economy collapsed and Trump's 2013 deal collapsed.
But the Russian invasion added to a long list of criticisms of President Obama's and, by extension, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton's foreign policy decisions. As the 2015 primary season progressed, the attacks became part of the Republican Party's debates.
That November, during the fourth installment, when asked, “What is President Trump doing in response to Russia’s aggression?” Trump’s first remark was, “Well, first of all, it’s not just about Russia.”
He then mentioned North Korea, Iran and China.
When Trump finally said Russian President Vladimir Putin’s name, he first talked about their time together in the “60 Minutes” green room before voicing his support for Russia’s growing influence in the Middle East.
Today, on the campaign trail, Trump speaks harshly about Russia, but as a private citizen, he tried to do business in Moscow even after Putin invaded Ukraine. And in the 2015 debate, Trump did not denounce Putin's actions in Ukraine. Perhaps that was because Trump had signed a new real estate contract for a tower in Moscow the week before.
In fact, he signed the letter of intent on the day of the third Republican debate. He spoke on stage for less than six minutes that night, and his lack of courage regarding Russia did not end there.
While president in July 2018, Trump stood by Putin in Helsinki and refused to confront him over interference in the 2016 election. Instead, Trump sided with Putin and questioned U.S. intelligence. Later that year, Russia Three Ukrainian naval vessels and 23 sailors were captured.Most notably, it was the first time Putin's government fired weapons at Ukraine. The incident sent shockwaves around the world, as leaders quickly denounced Putin's act of aggression on social media.
Trump, however, was not among them.
It was more than a full day before the leader of the free world told reporters he was not happy with Putin's aggression “and that he hoped it would be resolved.”
Obama underestimated Putin in 2012. During his debate against Mitt Romney, the Republican candidate said that Russia was the country’s main geopolitical enemy. Obama mocked him by saying that “the people from the 1980s are now calling to ask for their foreign policy back, because the Cold War ended 20 years ago.”
Perhaps in the case of the United States that was true.
But for Putin the war was never over, and Romney acknowledged that.
Concerns about Russia's influence in Europe's energy sector became a reality in 2006, after Ukraine welcomed a Western-friendly president. Putin quadrupled Ukraine's tariff on natural gas. When Ukraine objected, Putin cut off gas supplies to the country in the dead of winter. At the time, pipelines running through Ukraine carried about 80% of Russia's gas to Europe. So when Putin cut off gas supplies on Orthodox Christmas morning in 2009 (again because of his anger at Ukraine), more than 10 European countries suffered.
Trump cannot be allowed to rewrite this critical period in history because the consequences would be dire.
Yes, Russia annexed Crimea under Obama. Yes, Russia invaded Ukraine under Biden. But the first Russian bullet in this war was fired while Trump was in office, and he said, “Hopefully this will get sorted out.” The national security risks of such wishful thinking cannot be overstated.
If Ukraine falls, Putin will control about a third of the world’s wheat production and more than 60% of sunflower seed oil, which is used in countless food products. The Middle East and Africa rely heavily on Ukraine for grain. Do we really think that Putin, with his history of cutting off gas to punish democracies, would hesitate to weaponize food security as well?
The idea that candidate Trump was tough on Putin at that time is ridiculous. Trump had his chances and we saw how weak he was.
@LZGranderson
