A new Watergate? Bob Woodward reveals the secrets of Trump-Putin relations in his book “War”

With the election just weeks away, Americans are once again faced with a familiar, if still rhetorical, question: What is the relationship between former President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin?

Eight years ago, US intelligence agencies first publicly warned voters that Russia was trying to interfere in the 2016 election. And now a new book is coming out, drawing the world’s attention back to the politicians’ mysterious relationship, revealing that they have been secretly in touch for the past few years.

This is an investigative book by journalist Bob Woodward that traces how Donald Trump and Joe Biden respond to international crises and delivers a devastating verdict on Trump.

Western media are publishing excerpts from this book, which is due to be released on October 15.

Who is Bob Woodward and why is his book so resonant?

Bob Woodward is a famous American journalist and author, one of the most influential reporters of his time. His journalistic career is closely connected with the newspaper The Washington Post, where he has been working since 1971.

Woodward gained worldwide fame for the investigation he conducted with colleague Carl Bernstein in 1972-1974 regarding the Watergate scandal. This investigation led to the resignation of US President Richard Nixon. His work has received numerous awards, including the Pulitzer Prize.

During his career, Woodward wrote more than a dozen books, most of which touched on political topics and became real bestsellers. He is known for his ability to obtain inside information from high-level sources, which allows him to reveal the inner workings of power in Washington and the key points of American politics.

With his style and approach to investigations, he earned a reputation as one of the most knowledgeable and reliable journalists in the United States.

Confidential phone calls and coronavirus medicine

In the new investigation, Woodward cites an unnamed aide who testifies that the former president and current Republican nominee has had up to seven conversations with Putin since leaving office in 2021. This happened even when Trump was pressuring Republicans to block military aid to Ukraine. One of the most high-profile stories in the book concerns Trump sending Putin initially hard-to-find Covid tests for his personal use while still in office at the start of the 2020 pandemic. According to the book, Putin told Trump: “I don’t want to tell anyone about this because people will be mad at you, not me.”

Although other journalists have not been able to confirm information about possible contacts between Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin after the end of his presidential term, the report of this relationship caused a great stir in the presidential campaign and active discussions in Washington.

Former U.S. presidents often communicate with foreign leaders, but that communication usually takes place with the approval of the White House or the State Department, especially when it comes to communicating with a country that is an outspoken adversary of the United States, as is the case with Russia.

Therefore, the information about Trump’s contacts with Putin without consent can create additional suspicions and challenges both for Trump himself and for the Republican Party as a whole, especially in the context of security and international relations.

Sympathies that threaten Ukraine

Trump has long sought rapprochement with Putin, expressed extreme respect and admiration for him. He has repeatedly refused to say that Ukraine should win the war, opposed additional arms shipments to defend it, and said publicly that he would “encourage” Russia to “do whatever they want” with NATO members who underinvest in their militaries.

February 22, 2022 edition The New York Times reported, that Trump called Mr. Putin’s aggression “genius” and the Russian leader “very clever” for presenting the troops stationed on the Ukrainian border as peacekeepers.

In his campaign speeches, Trump constantly mentions that he has a “very good relationship” with Putin, which he believes will allow him, if he wins the election, to negotiate peace within 24 hours, even before the inauguration – and on terms that will be beneficial for the Kremlin.

It is also telling that Trump has mentioned the Russian leader at 41 campaign rallies this year, far more than in any year since his first campaign in 2015. It can be assumed that he is trying to emphasize the importance of his relations with Russia for the formation of international policy, aimed at appeasing voters who support the idea of ​​dialogue with the Kremlin.

Bob Woodward also describes the scene at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago residence, when he says the former president asked a senior adviser to leave the room to “have what he described as a private phone conversation with Russian President Vladimir Putin.”

This detail underscores Trump’s alleged desire for personal privacy during the conversation with Putin, which may indicate the seriousness or sensitivity of the topic of discussion. In addition, it calls into question the ethics and political expediency of such conversations, especially in the context of tensions and conflicts between the United States and Russia.

Bob Woodward’s revelations raise an important question about what will happen to American support for Ukraine if Donald Trump wins the US election.

“Trump did not give permission to write this waste paper”

Trump’s campaign team quickly responded to this information, denying Woodward’s claims. “None of these stories made up by Bob Woodward are true. They are the work of a truly deranged and deranged person,” Trump campaign spokesman Stephen Chung said. “President Trump has given him absolutely no access to write this waste paper, which belongs either in the cheap fiction section or in the toilet,” Chung said in a commentary for the BBC.

The comment is indicative of the Trump team’s attempts to distance themselves from context that could hurt their campaign, particularly on foreign policy and relations with allies such as Ukraine.

Chun also noted that “mean little man” Woodward is clearly upset that President Trump is successfully suing him over the unauthorized release of tapes he made earlier. However, the statement did not provide a clear answer to the question of whether Trump had spoken with Putin after his term as president ended, and the spokesman avoided it.

Previously, Bob Woodward had already interviewed Donald Trump for his book, published in 2021, entitled “Rage”. Trump then sued Woodward, claiming that the author did not have permission to publish the tapes of their interview. Woodward himself denied the allegation, pointing out that he was acting within the scope of his journalistic powers.

This legal dispute highlights the complex relationship between the former president and the journalist, who have clashed over issues of ethics and truthfulness in reporting, not for the first time. At the same time, it exposes the broader problem of the relationship between politicians and the media, where each side tries to control the narrative and influence public opinion.

The Kremlin, in turn, denied reports from Woodward’s book about conversations between Trump and Putin. “This is not true,” Dmytro Peskov, a Kremlin spokesman, said in a text message. “This is a typical false story in the context of an election political campaign.”

Trump’s stance on support for Ukraine has always been controversial, and these new revelations only heighten concerns about possible changes in US policy toward Kyiv if he returns to the White House.

In the fall of 2022, the probability of a nuclear attack in the USA was estimated at 50%

As Woodward notes, in early September 2022, Joe Biden’s administration received information from intelligence with a “deeply disturbing assessment” of Putin’s likelihood of using nuclear weapons.

The book says that the Russian leader is desperately afraid of losses on the battlefield and may resort to the use of tactical nuclear weapons in Ukraine. The probability of such a scenario increased from 5% to 10%, and then to 50%.

In response to these reports, Biden ordered the White House to contact the Russian side “through all possible channels” to inform them “what we plan to do in response.”

Also from the book is known, that Biden criticized former President Barack Obama’s handling of Putin’s 2014 invasion of Crimea, concluding that “Barack never took Putin seriously.”

Among other things, the editor of The Washington Post talks about two conversations between Pentagon chief Lloyd Austin and then-Russian defense minister Sergei Shoigu in October 2022.