Trump, on the other hand, loves the phone. During his first term, he called everyone from Putin, with whom he had a “good relationship,” to Merkel and Hollande, the gray former president of France. As soon as he returned to the White House, he resumed direct communications, even from Florida, from his “White House” there. One of the first numbers he dialed was that of a person who is now a criminal, expelled and wanted by Moscow.
By Domenico QUIRICO
Who knows if today’s phone call between Trump and Putin will go down in history, like the one between Churchill and US President Roosevelt on December 7, 1941. “What is this news about Japan? Is it true?” The answer that came from America in a hoarse voice is now part of the history books: “They attacked us at Pearl Harbor. Now we are in the same boat.” At that time, the two leaders spoke to each other using a complex machine invented by Bell, which encoded and decoded voice messages to ensure secret communication. The Russian-Ukrainian war, on the other hand, has set the world back almost half a century.
Today’s phone call is the first of the new Cold War, a war that is always on the verge of turning hot. The Big Two are coordinating to find a way out, eliminating dangerous and annoying “details” between them. While the others, the Little Ones, like Ukraine and Europe, simply sit and watch, hoping that the decisions made will not be too hard for them.
In the time of Kennedy and Khrushchev, the legend of the “red telephone” would have been mentioned, a myth, because in reality, messages between Washington and Moscow were sent in writing to avoid dangerous misunderstandings. This was to avoid the long hours of deciphering codes, when the bombs were already ready to be dropped from the bunkers. Trump, on the other hand, adores the telephone. During his first term, he called everyone, from Putin, with whom he had “good relations”, to Merkel and Hollande, the gray former president of France. As soon as he returned to the White House, he resumed direct communications, even from Florida, from his “White House” there. One of the first numbers he dialed was that of a person who is now a criminal, expelled and wanted by Moscow.
His diplomacy is simple: without intermediaries, bypassing the “Deep State” experts, whom he distrusts because, according to him, they conspired with the Democrats. He adapts to a direct style, based on bluffs, provocations, threats and unpredictable moves.
A Clash Between Two Different Styles
This 21st-century Cold War phone summit is fascinating. On one side is Trump, an “egocrat,” who turns politics into a brutal, direct, and pure show of force, like a modern version of Teddy Roosevelt challenging Europe’s rotten democracies. On the other is Putin, a cold and ruthless strategist, a master of shadows and silent play. He understands the language of force because he learned it as a child, in Soviet books. Unlike his bombastic rhetoric and his crude spokesmen, he does not tolerate posturing or vanity, and for three years now, so-called “optimistic thinkers” have declared him dead, but sanctions have not shaken him. For him, success is not a few Ukrainian villages, but his return as a major global actor, as an equal to Trump.
Meanwhile, those who for three years have called Putin a bloodthirsty bandit now look confused and helpless as he returns to the scene. As for Crimea, Donbass, and Ukraine’s entry into NATO, the deal seems a foregone conclusion. NATO, meanwhile, has lost its role, as it is effectively an extension of the Pentagon. If there was once an international “crime,” time has now undone it, or rather Trump has canceled the norm that forbade it. As for the details of the ceasefire procedures, they are a matter for diplomats and negotiating “sherpas.” Meanwhile, Putin has no reason to rush: He wants the war to end, because “Holy Russia” may be tired of the sacrifices. But the longer the war drags on, the more ground Russian troops will gain.
HISTORY REPEATS ITSELF
In many conflicts, before the “uti possidetis” – that is, the final armistice line – is determined, armies try to advance as far as possible. A classic example: the Yom Kippur War (1973). When Israeli tanks crossed the Suez Canal, the Americans delayed the ceasefire, because the longer they waited, the more Sharon and the Israeli army advanced into Egypt. In the same way, Zelensky demands a ceasefire as soon as possible, because his troops are shrinking in the Kursk and Donbas Regions. But Trump is not a classic politician, he is a man of surprises. And his next move could be a face-to-face summit.
