“Don’t rescue Putin in Ukraine,” Steve Forbes warns Trump

In a video published on 13 December, Forbes Chairman Steve Forbes has outlined a deal that US President-elect Donald Trump “must make with Putin” to end the Russo-Ukrainian war “without feeding Russia’s imperialism,” according to 2024.

US President-elect Donald Trump, who will assume office on 20 January, called for an immediate ceasefire and negotiations to end the Russo-Ukrainian war. Previously, Trump has repeatedly promised to swiftly end the Russo-Ukrainian war, with his team members suggesting that Ukraine may need to make territorial concessions to Russia in exchange for a ceasefire.

In the video, the Forbes chairman stated that after the defeat in Syria, Russian President Vladimir Putin “takes comfort that he may still achieve his goal to subdue Ukraine and ultimately get control of that blood-soaked land through negotiations with President Donald Trump.”

Forbes draws parallels between current events and the 1938 Munich agreement, warning against appeasing Russian President Vladimir Putin.

“Putin thinks he can get the kind of deal Adolf Hitler got from British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain at Munich in 1938,” Forbes says.

Steve Forbes urges not to compromise with Russia’s President Vladimir Putin:

“Don’t rescue Putin in Ukraine. After the Syria debacle, his aggressive anti-US imperial ambitions can be dealt a decisive blow.”

Ceding lands

The Forbes chairman proposes a settlement that would allow Russia formal control of some territories while ensuring Ukraine’s independence.

“A settlement will realistically involve the Kremlin getting formal control of a few pieces of territories in the east where it can claim the population is predominantly Russian,” Forbes states.

While advocating against a deal in the style of the 1938 Munich Agreement, known as the Munich Betrayal, Steve Forbes suggested implementing its core provision in Ukraine: ceding territory.

The original Munich Agreement allowed Germany to annex Czechoslovakia’s Sudetenland. Similarly, ceding Ukrainian land to Putin would represent the very “feeding of Russia’s imperialism” that Forbes’ proposal seeks to prevent.

Forbes believes that Trump’s final deal must “unmistakably leave Ukraine an independent nation with strong security arrangements. To that end, mere promises are useless, just as they were in 1938 regarding Czechoslovakia.”

Military bases instead of NATO membership

The plan suggests that security can be achieved even without Ukraine’s formal NATO membership, but “with something even better.” According to him, a better option is establishing permanent military bases staffed by troops from multiple nations, with “a powerful military force numbering in the six figures.” These nations may include Britain, France, Poland, the US, and potentially Finland, Sweden, Slovakia, and the Czech Republic.  

According to Forbes, the costs could be covered using “$300 billion of frozen Russian bank assets held in the West,” which could also support Ukraine’s reconstruction.

Forbes calls for removing US restrictions on Ukraine regarding military targets inside Russia and urges NATO members, “especially the foot-dragging Germans,” to provide sufficient weaponry and ammunition to Ukraine.

The Forbes chairman notes Russia’s current challenges, stating,

“Moscow is not without problems in both manpower, who could have imagined Russia having to hire North Korean mercenaries, and getting certain kinds of weaponry.”

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