Fmr. Russian Foreign Minister: “Of Course” Putin Is Taking Advantage Of Trump
by
JakeThomas
20 hrs
"At best it's naïveté, but after three years in power—the naïveté is a little bit too much."
Former Russian Foreign Minister Andrei Kozyrev told CNN this week that he is certain President Vladimir Putin is taking advantage of President Donald Trump, according to Newsweek.
Kozyrev, who served as Russia's foreign minister from 1990 to 1996, said Trump’s "naïveté is a little bit too much” this far into his first term.
"At best it's naïveté, but after three years in power—the naïveté is a little bit too much," he said. "Sometimes people who are newcomers, they come to White House.… They entertain some kind of naïve ideas.”
With the full force of the U.S. intelligence community at his disposal, Trump should have better judgment when it comes to his relationship with Putin and foreign policy in general, Kozyrev said. "After three years, that looks strange to me."
When the former Russian official was asked if Putin is “taking advantage” of Trump, he answered, “Of course,” Newsweek reported.
"That's what he does. He wants to discredit America, and that's his aim: to paint America like not a leader of the free world," he said, arguing that Putin’s goal is to portray the U.S. "exactly like a commercial kind of small guy…looking for immediate profit."
Kozyrev said Trump’s actions regarding Ukraine, which include the president’s pressure on Ukrainian officials to investigate Joe Biden, only further Putin’s goal. |
