Former U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton says the Trump administration’s position on Russia’s war against Ukraine is shameful.
She said this during a panel discussion at the Munich Security Conference.
Reaction to the U.S. position on Ukraine
“I believe that the Trump administration’s position on Ukraine is shameful…,” Clinton said. “The attempt to force Ukraine to agree to a capitulation agreement with Putin is a disgrace. I think the efforts that Putin and Trump are making to profit from the suffering and deaths of the Ukrainian people are a historic mistake and a corruption of the highest order”.
– Hillary Clinton
According to her, Ukraine today defends the democratic values of the West.
“Ukraine fights for our democracy and our values of freedom and civilization on the front lines, losing thousands of people,” she noted, adding that this war is driven by “the mania of one man to control” the Ukrainian people.
– Hillary Clinton
At the same time, Clinton expressed the view that Trump either does not realize the scale of the suffering, or he is indifferent to it.
She also accused the U.S. president of undermining Western unity and international commitments: “He betrayed the West. He betrayed human values. He betrayed the NATO Charter, the Atlantic Charter, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights”.
“He betrayed the West. He betrayed human values. He betrayed the NATO Charter, the Atlantic Charter, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights”.
– Hillary Clinton
According to the former secretary of state, none of those present in the hall would want to have a regime that acts irresponsibly and with impunity, “as Putin does,” with the exception of Trump, who is following this model.
“There is a plan to give the Ukrainians ‘Tomahawks’. Give them more missiles for the Patriot air defense system. Allow them to inflict greater damage… on Russian territory”, the politician explained.
– Hillary Clinton
In her view, Ukraine’s ability to strike targets inside Russia could lay the groundwork for serious negotiations.
“That is when they began to think about negotiations, when Ukraine could achieve goals inside Russia and inflict enough pain”, although Putin’s own losses are not sufficient, Clinton noted. In her view, one should “inflict pain on oil refineries, missile bases – pain that will actually create conditions for more effective negotiations”.
– Hillary Clinton
Participants in the conference also discussed the Western role in supporting Ukraine and the need to preserve unity of responses to aggression.
At the 62nd Munich Security Conference, world leaders are considering the main challenges of modern security, including threats to democratic values and regional stability.