Opinion: Trump's Ukraine call is helping Vladimir Putin spread his narrative of American corruption (via latimesopinion)
The reason President Trump’s July 25 call with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is so profoundly dispiriting — apart from its potential violation of federal campaign law — is that it runs counter to the United States’ clear national interest: fighting corruption in Ukraine and ensuring the nation’s future as an independent liberal democracy.
I first went to Ukraine in the fall of 2014 for the Obama administration State Department. It was six months after Putin invaded and annexed Crimea, the southernmost part of Ukraine, and sent troops into eastern Ukraine as well. The U.S. had just started a sanctions regime against Russia for these violations of Ukrainian sovereignty.
I had two assignments from the National Security Council: Help Ukraine’s information minister and its interim prime minister, Arseniy Yatsenyuk, combat the tsunami of Russian disinformation that was dividing Ukrainians, and urge them to address the rampant corruption that still existed in the Kiev government. The Ukrainians were besieged by Russian trolls accusing pro-democracy activists of being Nazis financed and controlled by the United States.
The fragility of Ukrainian institutions was brought home to me in my first meeting with the 2014 government’s acting information minister. He was well aware of the flood of Russian disinformation, including a barrage of propaganda asserting that annexing Crimea was simply returning the region to where it rightfully belonged. But when we talked about how to combat the Russian lies, he was far from prepared for a sophisticated counterattack.
United States Latest News, United States Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Russia says Donald Trump cannot release Vladimir Putin call transcripts unless he allows it'Overall, the diplomatic practice does not include such publications,' Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said. 'However, should there be any signals from Americans, we will discuss them.'
Read more »
Maddow on corruption in the oil and gas industry'You end up with a sort of corrosion of democracy in places where oil and gas companies have sway.' In her new book, “Blowout,” maddow explains how Russian President Vladimir Putin uses his country's energy supply to manipulate power in Ukraine.
Read more »
Why Trump's Ukraine call worries anti-corruption activists'This is exactly what we tried to change in Ukraine for the last five years,' one activist said of the president's actions.
Read more »
World leaders gather for funeral of France's Jacques ChiracAbout 30 foreign leaders, including Russian President Vladimir Putin, gathered o...
Read more »
Russia's Putin, Iran's Rouhani to discuss nuclear dealRussian President Vladimir Putin plans to discuss Iran's nuclear deal and s...
Read more »