Rep. Adam Smith, the ranking Democrat on the House Armed Services Committee, expressed disappointment with the summit between President Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin in Alaska. Smith criticized Trump for appearing more aligned with Putin in pushing for an end to the war in Ukraine without first agreeing to a ceasefire. Smith also criticized Trump’s “deference” to the Russian leader, contrasting it with the antagonism displayed during his explosive Oval Office meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in February. Smith argued that Trump’s deference to Putin, never stating the basic notion of Ukraine’s right to exist as a sovereign, democratic country, and the invasion as illegal, unlawful, sends the wrong signal if he is trying to force Putin to the table and get a negotiated end to the war. Smith applauded Trump’s effort to get Putin and Zelensky together, but he emphasized that Putin wants all of Ukraine and is trying to play President Trump and buy time to get in a better position to do so.
A top Democrat in the Armed Services sector has expressed disappointment with the Trump-Putin summit. ThuyTruongSpa 668
