Former US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, speaking on the High Stakes podcast hosted alongside journalist Kara Swisher, suggested that recent concessions by US President Donald Trump to Moscow could be explained by kompromat that Vladimir Putin allegedly holds on the American leader. This is reported by RBC-Ukraine with reference to the podcast recording. Clinton named several reasons for Washington's easing of pressure on Russia, pointing to possible kompromat as one of them.
"Photos, Video, Anything": Clinton's Phrasing
Responding to Swisher's question about why Trump is easing pressure on Russia right now, Clinton stated, "I still believe Putin has something on Trump." According to her, this could involve "photos, video, anything." The former secretary of state emphasized that this is her personal assessment based on observations of the US president's behavior, rather than confirmed documents.
Epstein Files as "Proof" of the Hypothesis
Clinton cited Trump's stubborn resistance to releasing the Epstein files as the main argument supporting her hypothesis. In her logic, the US president operates on a simple principle: keep Putin "happy" so he does not release what he is believed to hold. Thus, Clinton linked two seemingly unrelated storylines—policy toward Russia and the publication of materials in the Epstein case—into a single chain of motives.
"Putin's Puppet" and Dividing the World into Spheres of Influence
Clinton once again called Trump "Putin's puppet," just as she did during the debates ten years ago when she was a presidential candidate. According to her, she warned about Trump's ties to the Kremlin back then, and now, in her view, the world is witnessing confirmation of this "in real time." Furthermore, she suggested that Trump aims to divide the world into spheres of influence: the US would get North and South America, Putin would get Russia and Europe, and Xi Jinping would get the rest of the world. Clinton also warned that, in her opinion, Putin will not stop in Ukraine.
Context: Recent Washington Moves Toward Moscow
Clinton's statements came against the backdrop of several steps taken by Trump toward Moscow in recent weeks. According to RBC-Ukraine, he froze the sanctions bill against Russia, explaining it by a reluctance to push Moscow away from negotiations, and shortly before that approved an agreement on supplies of Russian diesel fuel. It was precisely these actions that prompted Swisher to ask about the reasons for the easing of pressure.
Kyiv's Reaction and Putin's Initiative
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in an interview with Bloomberg that Washington's moves look like an attempt to push Ukraine toward capitulation. According to him, Trump has good relations with Putin, but the US president cannot force him to end the war. Concurrently, according to The Wall Street Journal, Putin proposed that Trump and Xi Jinping hold a trilateral summit to discuss ending the war without Ukraine's participation. These circumstances form the backdrop against which Clinton builds her assessment of the US president's motives.
