A witness from Donald Trump’s first impeachment has suggested that the former US president may have been compromised by Russia. This comes as Trump and Zelensky are meeting in Washington to discuss mineral deal, ceasefire and more.

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Alexander Vindman, a retired US Army lieutenant colonel who testified against Trump in 2019, voiced his concerns during an interview with MSNBC’s Morning Joe on Tuesday (28 February). He accused Trump of betraying Ukraine to serve Russian President Vladimir Putin’s interests.

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“It’s disgusting – up is down, down is up,” Vindman said.

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“I’m not big into conspiracies because I see government as a leaky sieve – things just don’t stay secret. But now I’m starting to wonder, what does Putin have on Trump that he’s willing to bend over so hard, to bend over backwards to really support Putin’s agenda? It doesn’t make a huge amount of sense. He’s not getting anything for it right now. He’s giving away the farm,” he added.

Trump’s first impeachment

Trump was impeached in 2019 over allegations that he withheld nearly $400 million in US military aid to Ukraine while pressursing its president, Volodymyr Zelensky, to investigate Joe Biden, then a former vice president, and his son, Hunter. The inquiry centred on Trump’s claim that Biden had influenced the dismissal of a Ukrainian prosecutor who was investigating Burisma, an energy company where Hunter Biden sat on the board. However, no solid evidence of wrongdoing by either Biden ever surfaced.

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Questions over Trump’s stance on Ukraine

Vindman pointed out that Trump has insisted on controlling half of Ukraine’s natural resources and key infrastructure in exchange for peace, yet he has made no demands of Russia and refuses to hold Putin accountable for the 2022 invasion.

“I’m not sure what kind of deal he’s making, where he’s giving everything that his opponent wants, nothing in return—maybe the promise, the dangle of something in the future,” Vindman said.

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“But he’s not getting anything. He’s voting against Ukraine, our allies in NATO, he’s calling Zelensky a dictator. He’s glad-handing and saying he’s going to visit Putin at the Kremlin. This is just surreal and a very, very wide departure, and it’s really throwing a lot of folks for a loop. They don’t know what to make of it,” he added.

“We’re now at the poison Kool-Aid stage of realism, that’s what you get with Donald Trump,” he said.

Ukraine’s position

Vindman argued that Ukraine has already made significant compromises in an effort to end the war but will not surrender its sovereignty.

“The Ukrainians are willing to bend over backwards also, they’re willing to compromise maximally to end this war, but they’re not going to give up their sovereignty,” he said.

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He added that pressure should be placed on Russia to negotiate, as its economy is fragile and the right mix of sanctions and battlefield successes could force Putin to the table. However, Vindman claimed that instead of increasing pressure on Russia, Trump’s approach is relieving it and shifting the burden onto Zelensky.

(With inputs from agencies)