Game of Cards: The Silent Influence of Putin, Trump & 'Joker in the Pack'

Among the many strange and tense moments during the Oval Office meeting on Friday (February 28, 2025) between US President Donald J Trump, his deputy, JD Vance, and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, one clearly stood out the most. This was the meeting where Trump officially broke America’s alliance with Ukraine.

A reporter asked Trump what would happen if Russia broke the ceasefire he was trying to negotiate. Trump snapped back, saying, “What if anything? What if a bomb drops on your head right now?” He spoke as if Russia breaking an agreement was highly unlikely, even though it has happened many a time before.

Trump defended Russian President Vladimir Putin, saying, “Putin went through a lot because of me. He had to deal with a fake investigation where they blamed him and Russia. You remember that? It was all a false accusation by the Democrats. He had to go through it, and he did.” Then, Trump explained why he thought such an event was unlikely, loudly declaring, “They respect me.” The suggestion was that, because Russia respected him, it would not break any ceasefire agreement.

Trump’s Defence of Putin Probe

The investigation Trump referred to was the US government’s probe into Russia’s interference in the 2016 presidential election. This included the Mueller investigation, led by Special Counsel Robert Mueller, which looked into whether Russia had influenced the polls, and if Trump’s campaign had any connections to it.

The investigation found that Russia did interfere in the election, but did not establish a direct collusion between Trump’s team and Russia. Trump and his allies repeatedly called the probe a ‘witch-hunt’, claiming that it was a Democratic attempt to discredit his presidency. Putin, as the leader of Russia, was frequently mentioned in discussions about the investigation, which is why Trump believes Putin was unfairly dragged into the controversy.

Trump appears to truly believe that he and Putin have formed a personal connection because they both faced attacks from the Democratic Party. Trump is usually practical and focussed on deals. But here, he was showing loyalty and warmth instead!

At another moment, Trump said Zelenskyy had a lot of hatred towards Putin, and insisted, “It’s hard for me to make a deal when there’s so much hate”. He was not explaining how a deal with Russia would benefit America, or why Russia would, indeed, keep its word. Instead, he was defending Russia by supporting Putin’s character.

Also read: Why Trump attacked Zelenskyy: Politics behind White House clash amid Russia-Ukraine war, Putin factor and more

In recent years, Trump’s close relationship with Putin has been talked about less often. After Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation did not find any proof of a criminal conspiracy between Trump’s campaign and Russia, many people—especially in the Centre and Left of politics—started to see the issue as less important. They no longer viewed the Russia scandal as a major concern.

Even though Mueller’s investigation faced obstacles, including Trump’s top aides refusing to cooperate, the evidence it uncovered was still shocking. Putin offered Trump’s company a huge business deal in Moscow, worth hundreds of millions of dollars. Trump lied about this deal, which gave Putin power over him by keeping it a secret.

Meanwhile, Trump’s campaign chairman, Paul Manafort, was also involved in business dealings with a Russian intelligence officer, which raised serious concerns.

Russia released hacked e-mail messages from the Democratic Party at a time when they helped Trump’s campaign the most. Later, after Trump publicly asked Russia to find Hillary Clinton’s missing e-mail messages, Russia attempted another hack.

Trump, Russia, Clinton e-Mails

The missing e-mail messages refer to those from Hillary Clinton’s private e-mail server when she was US Secretary of State. She had used a personal e-mail account instead of a government account, which raised security concerns. During an investigation, it was found that about 30,000 e-mail messages had been deleted, as Clinton’s team claimed they were personal, and not work-related.

During the 2016 election, Trump publicly asked Russia to find Clinton’s missing e-mail messages. Soon after, Russia attempted another cyber attack to access them. This incident added to concerns about Russia’s interference in the election.

The connection between Trump and Putin may not have been legally proven as a crime, but it was still highly suspicious and troubling. Conservatives have worked even harder to dismiss the Trump-Russia scandal as “baseless”.

A small group of Trump’s strongest supporters, Make America Great Again (MAGA), have openly supported Russian propaganda. However, most Republicans try to justify Trump’s actions by saying he is not necessarily pro-Russia, but instead focussed on deals. He puts ‘America First’, respects strengths and dislikes its weakness.

(The author of this article is an award-winning Science Writer and a Defence, Aerospace & Political Analyst based in Bengaluru. He is also Director of ADD Engineering Components, India, Pvt. Ltd, a subsidiary of ADD Engineering GmbH, Germany. You can reach him at: girishlinganna@gmail.com)

Also read: Zelenskyy gets royal welcome in UK as EU reaffirms support after US showdown, set to meet King Charles