Trump has made some very close-relationship-type comments about Putin. I put it that way rather than saying he likes Putin or he actually has a close relationship with Putin because I believe a lot of this is quite complex.
Trump is not trying to keep is friends close and his enemies closer, as the proverb goes. That means he’s not being friendly with Putin because he actually hates Putin and wants to shut him down on one way or another. Trump made the comments that he wants to get in good with Putin so that he can make deals, one of which includes reducing Russia’s nuclear stockpile. I think this is a load of crap, and I think Trump knows it. I think he just people to like him. He’s so afraid of being unpopular that he’ll say anything.
I think Trump has a dangerous combination of thinking he can control literally everyone, including world leaders, and getting closer to Putin because he wants to use Putin as a way to corner China by neutralizing Russia’s alliance with China by packaging such a great deal that Trump could do things that Putin would actually support even though it seriously harms Russia. Perhaps Trump thinks he could lift all sanctions on Russia in exchange for high tariffs on goods from China without Putin subsidizing China in other ways or without Putin supporting China in a trade war. Certainly, Putin could aggravate NATO in response to a trade war with China, which might encourage Trump to back off the trade war. Russia could also run more icebreaker ships through the Arctic north of them, only around June-August at this point, to show Trump that there is a way to get goods from China to Europe without leaving the Russia-China alliance. That would allow gridlock in the South China Sea via Chinese warships because there’s an alternate trade route so there’s no worry if the $5 trillion dollars of trade through the South China Sea has to be rerouted north of Russia. That way, in concert with China’s railroad plan from China to London, they could ship all goods to Europe by boat, rail, and plane without the South China Sea at all. With Russia threatening to invade Europe whenever it wants to threaten or whenever it wants to actually invade, what leg does Trump have to stand on? He already said he won’t defend NATO countries because he thinks they don’t deserve it because they don’t pay what we pay to be a member.
Trump has a lot of thinking to do on this issue, and I think his idea of cozying up to Russia is a bad one. It’s an ingenious plan, but I don’t think he knows what he’s doing. Honestly, I think Putin is going to walk all over us. He’s already proven he can take down our news channels with hacks that show RT News whenever he wants to. He could do that 24/7 and declare to all U.S. citizens that he is at war with us. Of course, he’d likely express his sincere apologies that some other country wants to go to war with us and offer an alliance with Russia to minimize the damage, all while Russia is invading along with other countries. Don’t forget Nicolas Maduro in Venezuela has no money, supports communism, purchases military planes and other arms directly from China and lives only about 4.5 hours from Washington D.C. by commercial aircraft. His military could fly to D.C. in 2 hours or an ICBM could be here in under an hour. Of course, all that needs to happen is a threat. No one needs to launch anything. I think Trump will get excited at first because, again, he thinks he can control and win everything, but I think, in short, he better be right. Otherwise, we all know what happens next.
Economically, Trump could do something, but he has to accept that he’s not going to win the aforementioned fight. If he hints at comingling war and economics, he’ll lose both. However, if he lifts sanctions on Russia in exchange for Russia standing idly by while China’s economy falls, that will work for the U.S and it will show China what they already know: that Russia is too weak. There are been many instances in which China has seen that they are running out of people to copy. Seriously! I know! This is their strategy. They have copied Russia for decades, nearly a century, in terms of style of government, control of its people, bullying of other countries, and in other areas.
In fact, China understands total war, but it has always looked to Russia to figure out how to run a country. China’s 36 War Strategems clearly show that China knows how to wage a war. What they don’t know how to do is run a country or appear to be civil. The only thing they know how to do is hurt their people and hurt other people. Like aliens invading the planet for its resources and then moving on to the next planet, they move from one country to another, doing exactly that. They bring their own people, not even paying locals for food or shelter (for example, flying in chefs and sleeping in tents in Zimbabwe), so as to ensure no benefit to the local economy with which it partnered. In fact, they’ve learned how to lie about mutually beneficial ‘partnerships’ from Russia. They’ve been quoted as saying they are scared that they’re running out of people to copy! Therefore, if they watch Russia do exactly nothing as the Chinese economy falls, what can they do? Invade Russia? Ha! In this way, Trump could do something good.
Trump should beware of the underground trade of literally everything and understand that he will probably not do much to hurt China, but if we can start slowing China’s economy, their citizens will realize they were betrayed and lose hope and other countries will start asking if American companies might want to build there instead of China. Trump will say no, but maybe the next President will say yes. In fact, as China’s economy slows, they will ramp up their military threats against the U.S., and therefore, they will be seen as threatening to kill if you don’t give them money. That is universally regarded as a hostage situation, and I don’t think China can survive politically if they do that. Nonetheless, I think they will do that, and that will show the world, to those who don’t know yet, who they really are. As the judge character in a courtroom drama says, “You can’t unring the bell.” The CCP is an organized crime unit, nothing more, and if cornered, they will be seen as such. They will still control a lot, but as money dries up and military inventory gets older and contracts end and won’t be renewed with various countries and companies around the world, the CCP will never budge but will get weaker and weaker. Therefore, economic development in Pakistan will slow, hope in the Iranian government will deflate somewhat, that new Silk Road certainly won’t go anywhere, and other countries will start to build in those areas. Russia couldn’t do that, though, because sanctions will be placed on them in they do. Maybe the President after Trump will do that and, if a democrat, help build up Pakistan, work with India on that, and start to show China that they are surrounded. Again, not in a militaristic way but to get them to sit down and understand that we love them and that they just need to get a grip. It’ll be a nice little intervention for those crazy people in Beijing.
Trump probably can’t do a damn thing about cyberattacks. That will be a very disastrous thing for America. This is a direct attack on civilians, and in fact, the rules of war, whether they are to not attack civilians or any other rule, are over. The rules of engagement have changed, and we should all be aware of that. During any time when Russia is boxed in, if Trump can do that, Russia and China and many others will attempt hacks. Russia and China are larger and, therefore, more noticeable, more frequent thus more identifiable, but there are others. I can’t say there’re many others because I don’t like the idea of just shouting whatever I feel like. Yes, North Korea and Iran have hacked. Yes, there are non-state hackers. However, in this post, focusing on Russia, it’s important to note that there will be many hacks from Russia during the time Trump is successful. Civilians will suffer. I doubt Russia will directly extract money from bank accounts in the United States or its ally countries, but I do believe it will make clear to all people of the United States that Russia is here and closer to their living rooms than ever before. It’s lose-lose for Trump. He presides over a country of people that are united in their fear of speaking freely, which erodes freedom of speech and other basic rights, and in their fear of voting, or he loses all his money by letting China do what they want with us. Either way, he loses. HOWEVER, in his view, this is not a loss because he doesn’t care about anyone but himself, and he has enough money and he does have the freedom to speak because, of course, he’s the President. Therefore, he would not be opposed to a way that would create jobs in America and also make the American people fear for their lives. He’s totally fine with that!
Hacking everywhere, money everywhere, and eventually, like I said earlier, those countries, mainly China, that don’t take military action because their economic warfare tactics are working well enough and are on pace with their goals will start to use military action when the money appears on a path to drying up someday, which will lead to the world seeing them for who they really are. We’ll have money, we’ll be terrified, someone’s going to die, and it’ll take a long time to undo the fear Trump, and others that Trump allows, put into our minds. Regardless, that’s something undoable.
I saved a special part of China for this section. If there were ever a South China Sea military conflict that appears to be conventional war, something that is just exchanging fire with the enemy, Trump has no idea what Russia will do. Of course, he thinks he does because he thinks he has a “very good brain” (OMG, c’mon), but he will be very wrong about this. Either transparently, through a network in which Russia calls the shots on the network’s defense of China, or through hard-to-prove actions, Russia will not support the U.S. in the South China Sea.
Let’s not jump to Russia mirroring what they did in Syria. That would happen in a situation in which there’s fighting in North Korean territory and Russia says they’ll attack North Korea but actually attacks South Korean troops or something and they even use ground troops of Siberian descent, who look East Asian and could wear South Korean uniforms, or other such Syria-esque behavior. However, that’s a bit different. I don’t really have information to explain what Russia might do in that situation. In fact, it’s my error for focusing on just South Korea, North Korea, China, and the U.S. when it comes to a war in North Korea whether in the air or with troops on the ground and from which countries these troops come. What if Russia provides troops? To whom? In what way–Navy, Air Force, ground troops, others? I haven’t looked into this, and that’s a problem.
In short, Trump is playing a very dangerous game with Putin. Putin is in total control of this situation. Russia has always been a country that doesn’t really do much except fight wars and prepare to fight wars and funding such wars with the sale of natural resources such that, if they someday don’t have those resources, they’d be a country that pretty much does nothing. Frankly, that day wouldn’t happen soon because global warming will allow them to extract natural resources in places where they can’t do so now, and this global warming will allow a trade route from China to Europe by traveling in protected Russian ally territory through the whole trip. China could completely block trade through the South China Sea and do their own trading with Europe, providing troops through their trains that they will probably guard with security employees that they “import” (Chinese terminology for sending citizens abroad) from China to various posts along the tracks and claiming that no one else is allowed to see the trains. Therefore, the South China Sea won’t be necessary, China will control shipping and rail transit throughout Asia and Europe and likely treat the United States as a place to eventually go whence it’s weak enough.