In a recent interview with ABC News, US President Donald Trump made the bold claim that his leadership – and specifically his 2024 election victory over Kamala Harris – prevented Russia from completely taking over Ukraine. According to Trump, Russian President Vladimir Putin had every intention of seizing the entire country, but Trump’s return to office halted those ambitions.

“I think if I didn’t win the election, he would have gotten all of Ukraine,” Trump said during the April 29 interview. “I think he would have taken all of Ukraine.”

Trump emphasized that Putin views Ukraine as “the apple of his eye,” strongly suggesting that the Russian leader’s ultimate goal was the full annexation of the country. However, Trump credited his own leadership and the respect he commands from Putin as key factors in preventing a total Russian victory.

During the interview, Trump also criticized the chaotic US withdrawal from Afghanistan in 2021, calling it a pivotal moment that emboldened Putin.

“He saw what happened in Afghanistan. He said, ‘Wow, this is my chance,’” Trump said. “It was one of the greatest embarrassments of our lifetimes – maybe in the history of our country.”

Trump has repeatedly blamed the Biden administration for creating an image of American weakness on the world stage. In Trump’s view, the disaster in Afghanistan signaled an opportunity to adversaries like Putin, who then escalated military operations against Ukraine. Trump positioned himself as the antidote to this weakness, insisting that his own re-election restored a deterrent against Russian aggression.

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