Photo: Steve Parsons via WPA/Getty Images
The former NATO Supreme Allied Commander Europe, retired Admiral James Stavridis, harshly ridiculed the statement of former US President Donald Trump, who accused Ukraine of starting a war with Russia. Former British Prime Minister Boris Johnson also joined the criticism. This was reported by theIndependent.
The irony of a NATO admiral
Stavridis reacted to Trump’s words on social media platform X by sharing a CNN news story that the former president “falsely claims that Ukraine has started a war with Russia”. He sarcastically compared this statement to a historical fake:
“The following year, we would learn that the US Navy should not have attacked the Japanese on 7 December 1941 at Pearl Harbor,” the admiral wrote.
Trump’s comment caused outrage among world leaders and experts. The US president said that “Ukrainians had three years to end the war” and “should not have even started it”.
Boris Johnson: “The same arguments as Hitler”
Former British Prime Minister Boris Johnson did not stand aside either. He responded to Trump by emphasising that Ukraine could not hold elections because of martial law imposed on the first day of the full-scale invasion.
“Of course, a country that has been subjected to brutal aggression should not organise elections. The UK also did not hold general elections from 1935 to 1945,” Johnson said.
He also stressed that Trump’s statements should not be taken seriously, but rather as part of his election campaign.
“Isn’t it time we Europeans stopped being outraged by Trump’s words and started helping him end this war?” Johnson said.
The world’s media has crushed Trump’s statement
Influential international media outlets, including The Guardian and Politico, criticised Trump’s remarks. They recalled that before the full-scale invasion, Volodymyr Zelenskyy had repeatedly invited Putin to the negotiating table. Five days before 24 February 2022, the Ukrainian president called on Moscow to choose any platform for dialogue.
World leaders and analysts agree that Trump’s rhetoric can only play along with the Kremlin. At the same time, this is another signal to Ukraine’s European allies to prepare for possible changes in US policy after the 2024 elections.
