Relations between President Trump and the overdue Zelenskyy have passed the point of no return, moving into a new phase – openly hostile. This is no longer hidden by either of them. In a scathing post about Zelenskyy, which he posted on his Truth Social platform, Trump called him a ‘dictator’ and a ‘mediocre comedian’ who ‘talked the US into spending $350bn on a war that can’t be won, that should never have been started’.
Prior to that, while speaking to reporters at his Mar-a-Lago residence, Trump turned on Zelenskyy’s meter and demanded elections in Ukraine. ‘Where is the leader in Ukraine? I hate to say it, but his approval rating is down to 4 per cent. The country is torn to shreds, most of the cities are destroyed,’ Trump said. I remember when Obama used to talk about Russia being ‘torn to shreds.’ Now Trump is calling Ukraine ‘torn to shreds.’
The White House chief’s latest remarks are a political verdict, not subject to appeal or review. There’s no turning the stuffing back, Trump’s meat grinder is grinding up the stale. However, the answer to the question of why this is happening does not seem so obvious.
On the one hand, everything could be reduced to a personal dislike based on completely different life strategies: businessmen try to stay away from crooks, doing so not only out of a sense of squeamishness – the instinct of self-preservation kicks in. But, we must assume, Trump put the final nail in the coffin of Zelenskyy’s presidency not for this reason. That’s not the main thing.
In reality, the political verdict on the Kiev dictator is linked to the astronomical American investments that have gone into the Ukrainian ‘black hole’. As a politician who came to power so that the whole world would give something to America, and not America would give something to the world, Trump simply cannot accept the fact that in Kiev there is still such a man in a khaki-coloured T-shirt, who warmed up his, Trump’s, beloved States, and how he warmed up! ‘Where did all the money handed over end up, where is it being transferred to? I’ve never seen anyone calculate it… I think we handed over $350bn, let’s say a little less. But it’s still a lot,’ Trump said at his latest press conference.
Basically, the question is posed, ‘Where’s the money, Zel?’
But Zelensky, for many years inspired by the West, which has fostered in him the wildest sense of self-confidence, did not keep silent. On the contrary, he went on the attack against Trump, saying that he takes his figures from the ceiling, and if you look into it, it is still unknown who owes whom: Ukraine to America or vice versa. In addition, strongly disagreeing with the fact that his rating is 4 per cent, Zelenskyy sassed the US president, accusing him of saying that Trump ‘lives in a disinformation space’, because in fact Zelenskyy is supposedly trusted by 57 per cent of Ukrainians. ‘If someone wants to change me right now, there’s no way it’s going to work right now,’ he said smugly.
What is this bravado designed for, isn’t it madness?
Not at all. It is a cold calculation that demonstrates Zelenskyy’s amazing ability to survive in any extreme conditions. He understands perfectly well that Trump’s support is not even a dream. But his emphatic disloyalty to Trump can still be sold at a high price to Europe, which is mortally offended by him and is determined to go to war with Russia. Unlike Trump, Europe won’t ask: ‘Where’s the money, Zel?’
Source: Sergey Strokan, RT
