President Donald Trump has an Achilles' heel when it comes to Russia.
Over the years, he's made no secret that he has a soft spot for the country and its authoritarian leader, President Vladimir Putin. Trump has proved that he is willing to reject widely held US foreign policy views and align himself with the Kremlin on everything from Russian interference in US elections to the war in Syria.
Trump's ties to Russians were so concerning that the FBI believed there was good reason to investigate potential collusion between his 2016 campaign and the Kremlin. Counterintelligence investigators also examined whether Trump himself was somehow a Russian asset. (Special counsel Robert Mueller did not establish a criminal conspiracy of collusion.)
In Trump's eyes, these allegations are proof of a conspiracy against him by Democratic lawmakers and other "deep state" enemies in the US government. He bombastically declared last year, "There's never been a president as tough on Russia as I have been."
But that claim is simply false, based on Trump's actions over the last few years. Here's a full breakdown of 25 occasions when Trump was soft on Russia or gave Putin a boost.
Russia's President Vladimir Putin and US President Donald Trump talk during a bilateral meeting at the G20 leaders summit in Osaka, Japan, June 28, 2019.
Trump has repeatedly praised Putin
While he was a private citizen, during his 2016 campaign and throughout his presidency, Trump has showered Putin with praise. He said Putin was "so nice," he called Putin a "strong leader" and said Putin has done "a really great job outsmarting our country." Trump also claimed he'd "get along very well" with Putin. Few, if any, Western leaders have echoed these comments.
Trump hired Manafort to run his campaign
Trump raised eyebrows in spring 2016 when he hired GOP operative Paul Manafort to run his presidential campaign. Manafort spent a decade working for pro-Russian politicians and parties in Ukraine and cultivated close relationships with Putin-friendly oligarchs. Manafort is currently in prison for, among other things, evading taxes on the $60 million he made from his Ukraine consulting.
Trump suggested Russia can keep Crimea
Trump said Putin did "an amazing job of taking the mantle" when Russia annexed Crimea in 2014. During the presidential campaign, Trump broke with US policy and suggested he was OK if Russia kept the Ukrainian territory. He repeated a Kremlin talking point, saying, "The people of Crimea, from what I've heard, would rather be with Russia than where they were."
Trump's team softened the GOP platform on Ukraine
Ahead of the 2016 Republican National Convention, Trump campaign aides blocked language from the party platform that called for the US government to send lethal weapons to Ukraine for its war against Russian proxies. Mueller investigated this for potential collusion but determined the change was not made "at the behest" of Russia. (The Trump administration ultimately gave lethal arms and anti-tank weapons to the Ukrainian military.)
Trump made light of Russian hacking
Throughout the 2016 campaign, Trump cast doubt on the US government assessment that Russia hacked the Democratic National Committee and Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton's campaign chairman. At a news conference in July 2016, he even asked Russia to hack more, saying, "Russia, if you're listening, I hope you're able to find the 30,000 emails that are missing,"
Trump denied that Russia interfered in 2016
The Office of the Director of National Intelligence, the FBI, the CIA, the National Security Agency, the Justice Department and the Senate Intelligence Committee all confirmed that Russia interfered in the 2016 election to help Trump. But Trump has repeatedly rejected this view, and publicly sided with Putin at the Helsinki summit in 2018, saying he accepted Putin's denials.
Trump transition undermined Russian sanctions
After the election, the Trump transition team asked Russia not to retaliate against new US sanctions imposed by then-President Barack Obama. The sanctions were meant to punish Russia for interfering in the election, but then-Trump aide Michael Flynn asked the Russian ambassador not to escalate the situation so they could have a good relationship once Trump took over.
Trump was open to lifting Russian sanctions
Days before his inauguration, Trump told The Wall Street Journal that he was open to lifting sanctions on Russia. He said: "If you get along and if Russia is really helping us, why would anybody have sanctions if somebody's doing some really great things?" Putin has tried for years to persuade the US and European countries to end crippling sanctions on Russia's economy.
Trump refused to say Putin is a killer
Bucking other US leaders, Trump has dismissed credible allegations that Putin uses violence against his opponents. Trump said in 2015, "I think it would be despicable if that took place, but I haven't seen any evidence that he killed anybody, in terms of reporters." Asked again in February 2017, Trump deflected, saying, "There are a lot of killers. Do you think our country is so innocent?"
Trump mulled giving spy compounds to Russia
The Washington Post reported in May 2017 that the Trump administration considered returning two diplomatic compounds to Russia. The Obama administration expelled Russian diplomats and seized the compounds in New York and Maryland after the 2016 election, claiming they were used for "intelligence" purposes. The compounds were never returned to Russia.
Trump gave Russia classified intelligence
President Trump with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov in the Oval Office
In a shocking move during the early months of his presidency, Trump shared highly classified intelligence with two senior Russian officials during an Oval Office meeting in May 2017. The intelligence, which was about ISIS, was sensitive enough that it could have exposed a vulnerable source. The unplanned disclosure by Trump rattled even many of his Republican allies.
Trump was reluctant to sign Russian sanctions
Lawmakers passed a bipartisan bill in July 2017 imposing new sanctions against Russia, even though Trump administration officials reportedly tried to water down the language. Trump reluctantly signed the bill, but said the new law contained "clearly unconstitutional provisions." Trump had little choice in the matter because the bill had passed with veto-proof majorities. (The Treasury Department followed up with several rounds of hard-hitting sanctions.)
Trump thanked Putin for expelling US diplomats
Trump thanked Putin for expelling hundreds of US diplomats from Russia in August 2017, saying, "I want to thank him because we're trying to cut down our payroll." Putin kicked out the officials to retaliate for US sanctions. Trump's view conflicted with the State Department, which said the mass expulsion was "uncalled for." (Trump later said he was being sarcastic.)
Trump criticized and alienated NATO allies
Trump has repeatedly attacked NATO, aligning himself with Putin, who wants to weaken the alliance. Trump said NATO was "obsolete," rattling European leaders. At his first NATO summit, Trump scolded other countries for not spending enough on defense and declined to commit to NATO's mutual defense pledge. (Trump later said he supported the mutual defense provision.)
Trump eased sanctions on Deripaska
In January 2019, the Trump administration lifted sanctions on three Russian companies tied to Oleg Deripaska, a Russian oligarch with close ties to Putin. The Treasury Department had sanctioned Deripaska and the companies over his support for Russian interference in the 2016 election. In a bipartisan rebuke, 11 Senate Republicans supported a Democratic resolution calling for the sanctions to remain.
Trump congratulated Putin on his sham election
Ignoring the advice of several top national security aides, Trump congratulated Putin on his March 2018 reelection victory. Putin got 77% of the vote, but Western observers declared that the election "lacked genuine competition" and took place in an "overly controlled legal and political environment." Trump's critics said he had given the election legitimacy it did not deserve.
Trump defended USSR invasion of Afghanistan
During a January 2019 Cabinet meeting, Trump defended the Soviet Union's invasion of Afghanistan. He said the Soviet Union "was right" to invade in 1979 because "terrorists were going into Russia." The comments puzzled many observers, who noted that the Soviets invaded to bolster a communist government and the US had backed Afghan militants who fought the Soviets.
Trump praised pro-Russian leaders in Europe
On several occasions, Trump has praised controversial far-right European leaders who have been shunned by most US officials because of their close ties to Putin. Trump met at the White House with Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, a top Kremlin ally. He praised the campaign of French politician Marine Le Pen, whose party previously got millions from a Russian bank.
Trump didn't publicly condemn Russian attack
According to congressional testimony, Trump declined to publicly condemn a Russian attack against Ukrainian military vessels in November 2018, even though the State Department prepared a statement for him. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo criticized Russia's "dangerous escalation." The White House didn't say anything, but Trump canceled a meeting with Putin.
Trump wanted to let Russia back in the G7
Breaking with American allies, Trump repeatedly called for Russia to be invited back into the Group of Seven. Russia was suspended from the working group of leading industrial nations in 2014 after Putin annexed Crimea. At this year's G7 summit in France, Trump pressed the other leaders to include Russia next year. They balked at the request, which would have been a huge benefit to Putin without any concessions.
Trump's Syria withdrawal gave Putin a boost
Trump announced in October 2019 that US troops were withdrawing from northern Syria. The abrupt move cleared the way for Turkey to conquer territories previously controlled by the US and allied Kurdish militias. It also gave Russia a golden opportunity to expand its influence and swiftly take over abandoned US outposts and checkpoints. Trump's move was a boon for Putin.
Trump repeated Kremlin talking points on ISIS
After announcing the Syria withdrawal, Trump repeated Kremlin talking points about ISIS. He said, "Russia hates ISIS as much as the United States does" and that they are equal partners in the fight. But Trump's comments don't reflect the reality on the ground: Since intervening in Syria in 2015, the Russian military has focused its airstrikes on anti-government rebels, not ISIS.
Trump spread Russian myths about Ukraine
Over the past two months, Trump has said many false things about Ukraine that align with Russian disinformation about the country. This includes claims of uncontrollable corruption, improper ties between Ukrainian officials and the Obama administration, and allegations that Ukraine meddled in US elections. This helps Putin's goal of destabilizing US-Ukraine relations.
Trump temporarily froze US aid for Ukraine
As the impeachment inquiry has revealed, Trump personally froze $391 million in US military and security assistance for Ukraine in mid-2019. US diplomats said Ukraine desperately needed the help for its war against Russian proxies. Previously, the Trump administration had slow-walked sales of anti-tank missiles to Ukraine because of concerns it would upset Russia, according to a State Department official.If his performance at Helsinki didn't prove that there's something very, very weird about all this then nothing will. It remains one of the top five most stunning moments of the Trump presidency.