Trump making Putin happy (part 2): Ukraine – the rape parallel
(Apologies but) This is the most apt way of understanding Trump’s mindset and rhetoric: like a bent cop who takes the side of the Russian rapist - and btw, wasn’t Ukraine kind of 'asking for it' ?
(Drawing by Mansoure Dehghani)
BY MICHAEL ANDERSEN
Imagine that you have been raped. I can assure you that was how many Ukrainians felt when watching the Donald Trump show yesterday. In fact, I have heard several Ukrainian friends and colleagues draw parallels between Trump’s policies on Ukraine/Russia and that of allowing a rapist to ‘get away with it’ and the victim being left on her own.
Despite his campaign promises (threats) of focusing on the U.S. and not the world’s problems, President Trump clearly cherishes the limelight and the traditional role of Washington as ‘the world’s police man’. For the past 23 days he has embraced that role with gusto - and venom - chasing around all over the world map; carving up Greenland and Canada, and reclaiming seas and canals for the U.S. And he has taken upon himself to end the war in Ukraine. But in his own manner.
The police and the rapist agree how to solve the case
The cornerstone of the western legal system is ‘equality before the law’, meaning that both sides shall be heard in a dispute, not just the strongest or the richest or the most powerful. Fairness.
So, we have a woman – we shall call her Ukraine - who has been attacked and raped by her neighbor, we shall call him Russia. We have the rape filmed in all its horrific details, on a thousand mobile phones. There is zero doubt that it was premeditated and unbelievably violent and sadistic rape. Russia is even proudly boasting of having raped and pillaged Ukraine. Now Russia is sitting in Ukraine’s living room, refusing to leave.
The new sheriff in town, D Trump, promised to solve the case “within 24 hours of taking office”. After actually having taken office, he recanted quite radically on that - now he says that he will have the war finished by the end of 2025.
One of Trump’s first steps has been to freeze the US funding for war crimes investigations in Ukraine. This is no small matter: One of the things that all Ukrainians agree on is that there can never be any peace without justice. But no investigation - no justice.
(Reuters headline Feb 10, 2025)
140,000 Russian war crimes have been recorded by investigators in Ukraine since the full-scale invasion in February 2022; acts such as attacks on civilians (rape, beatings, torture and deportations). According to Reuters, six U.S.-funded projects at Ukraine's Prosecutor General's Office (with an overall budget of $89 million) face closure, many investigations have already been halted. (Two of the projects were funded by USAID, three by the Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement, and one by the State Department, says Reuters.) You remember how in the films somebody in the police lab makes an important piece of forensic evidence in connection with the rape case disappear? That’s what Trump just did - but on an industrial scale - and in full daylight.
23 days into his rule, ‘the world’s police man’ still hasn’t found the time to talk in-depth to the rape victim, Ukraine.
But the perpetrator, Russia, Trump took time for yesterday. A lot of time, in fact. 90 minutes. And after his conversation with Vladimir Putin, ‘the world’s police man’ pronounced that he and Putin had agreed to start negotiations on ending the war.
In a social media post, Trump said he held a “lengthy and highly productive phone call” with Putin and that they agreed to “have our respective teams start negotiations immediately”.
The Ukrainian President would be “informed” about this, Trump added laconically.
In a press conference, ’the world’s police man’ was asked directly about the central tenet of our legal system - equality before the law:
QUESTION: “Do you view Ukraine as an equal member of the peace process?”
TRUMP: “… ehm… that’s an interesting question. I think they have to make peace. Their people are being killed and I think that they have to make peace.”
In other words, ‘the world’s police man’ will not guarantee that Ukraine will even be at the negotiating table when its own fate will be decided, or what kind of input it will have.
The contrast to what all other western leaders have stressed again and again since the Russian invasion three years ago could simply not be stronger; for three years, Joe Biden always swore that “the U.S. wouldn't hold peace talks without Ukraine at the table” - and “it is up to Ukraine to decide when and how they want to negotiate.”
“Nothing about Ukraine without Ukraine,” Biden said, “this is a decision Ukraine has to make.”
Last night Putin graciously confirmed that is willing to start negotiations with the United States on Ukraine.
Even before the talks have officially started, Trump yesterday concluded that it was “unlikely” that Ukraine would take much land back in the negotiations.
In fact, Trump seems to think that it is only fair that Russia keeps part of Ukraine, because Russia “took a lot of land, and they fought for that land and they lost a lot of soldiers.” In other words, the rapist should also get ‘something out of it.’
This was rather abruptly illustrated by Trump’s Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth - who at the very same time was meeting in Bruxelles with his NATO colleagues. His message was short and brutal, dashing all hopes that Ukrainians could have had:
Ukrainian NATO membership is off the table; the US will not send any troops to Ukraine for any reason (including peacekeeping); the US will no longer supply or pay for weapons and support for Ukraine; Ukraine will not be able to go back to the borders it had before 2014 - the Trump administration expects large territorial concessions from Ukraine.
I am sure that I don’t need to remind you of Trump’s view on women and what constitutes acceptable behavior for men.
Translation: ‘sure Ukraine, you say that you’ve been raped by Russia, and Russia is still occupying part of your house. You want our help in punishing him and kicking him out, and to protect you from future attacks. That ain’t gonna happen. Just suck it up, it’s the way of the world’.
Blaming the victim
And then the ‘world’s police man’ proceeded to do what the dodgy cop does in the tv shows – he blamed the victim.
TRUMP: “That was not a good war to go into. And I think they have to make peace, that’s what I think.”
Again, Russia invaded Ukraine. The Russian rapist attacked Ukraine. There is zero doubt about the turn of events. On Feb 24, 2022, Putin even went on TV and told the Russians “this morning, I gave the order for our troops to cross the border into Ukraine.”
Ukraine did not “go into” any war. She was attacked. The alternative is - as we do hear people suggest to women who are raped - it is better to ‘stop resisting’. And presto - ‘the world’s police man agrees - Ukraine should not have resisted:
(Headline in the Independent Jan 25, 2025)
But in fact this is even worse: “to go into” a war, as Trump claims that Ukraine did, implies that you yourself moved towards the war. That you provoked the attack. And there you have it: blaming the victim. The oldest and most disgusting trick in the book for police men who do not want to investigate a rape. And what a present for Russia the rapist.
It’s no surprise, of course: On previous occasions, Trump has tainted Ukrainians as “corrupt” and their president to boot: “Every time Zelensky comes to the United States he walks away with $100 billion, I think he’s the greatest salesman on Earth,” Trump said in September - clearly implying that the Ukrainian leader is lying or exaggerating about the need of his people.
Recently, ‘the world’s police man’ summed up his opinion of the Ukrainian leader:
We have all seen the film - the dodgy policeman begrudgingly investigating the rape, finds out that the girl was wearing a short skirt or a low-cut shirt, and it was also rumoured that ‘she liked a good time’.
‘Yeah, she is no angel’. Victim blaming and partly justifying the rape.
But it gets worse.
Next the U.S. President was asked about whether Ukraine should cede territories to Russia as part of a peace deal to end the war?
“Well, he [Zelensky] is going to have to do what he has to do, but you know, his polling numbers aren’t particularly great, to put it mildly. He has got a country that has been savaged and attacked….”
In other words - ‘the rape victim is poor and can’t afford a fancy lawyer, she’s painted into a corner, so let’s just drop the case and we all move on. That Putin dude is an important pillar in the community’.
‘Putin and I will sort it out, but you’ll have to give him 20% of your country, and he decides who you can go out with. And he definitely never ever wants to see you with that guy NATO, so that ain’t happening’.
The rapist in the Kremlin - I repeat; caught red-handed on camera for all the world to see - is laughing: ‘I got away with another one, haha, Georgia in 2008 and now Ukraine in 2014 and 2022.’
PS: Again, I apologize for using this upsetting parallel, no disrespect, but I truly believe that this is the best, most apt way of explaining the way the new U.S. President is looking at what the rest of us consider an unprovoked Russian invasion – with the perp still camping out in the victim’s living room, no remorse. And now victim blaming.
This is the second installment in my series ‘Trump making Putin happy’, you can read the first piece here:
Thank you very much, appreciated
How about NATO reforming without US? If Trump denies all assistance to Ukraine, then he/US has no say in the war, no negotiating power, no leadership role. Trump has given up that status. Europe goes it alone now and is much stronger for it. Kind of like that sports team always in turmoil because somebody insisted on the prima donna player being on the team. Get rid of the irritant and the whole team is better for it.