Donald Trump may be receptive to Vladimir Putin’s views because he was exposed to Russian influence during visits to the Soviet Union in the 1980s and 1990s, a senior foreign correspondent has suggested.
Andrew Jehring said he did not believe the US president was a Russian asset acting under orders from the Kremlin. Instead, he argued that Trump’s worldview may have been shaped by Russian talking points over several decades.
His comments came as the US faced criticism over a series of moves that could weaken Ukraine’s war effort, including the easing of sanctions on Russian diesel exports and claims that access to Elon Musk’s Starlink satellite network had been restricted for Ukrainian forces.
Trump announced last Friday that sanctions would be relaxed to allow Russian diesel to be sold in the US and international markets. It remains unclear whether Russia can supply the nearly five million tonnes Trump cited, but the decision represents a significant reduction in economic pressure on Moscow as its war in Ukraine continues.
Ukraine also said on Wednesday that SpaceX had limited its military’s access to Starlink, which has become central to the country’s drone operations. The Trump administration has denied involvement in any disruption to the network.
There have also been reports that Washington has threatened to stop sharing intelligence with Kyiv, potentially putting recent Ukrainian gains at risk.
Asked whether the developments supported the theory that Trump was leaning towards Russia, Jehring said: “I don’t think he’s a Russian asset. In the sense that Putin tells him what to do. That he’s been planted there by the KGB in a plot dating back decades. I don’t buy any of that.”
But he said claims that the KGB had held files on Trump, combined with his links to the Soviet Union through visits and his former wife, meant he would have been a person of interest.
“He had an awful lot of assets. He was quite famous, a mover and shaker,” Jehring said. “So, it would be more surprising to me if the KGB or FSB did not stick someone on him.”
He suggested that a person placed around Trump at social events may have fed him Russian arguments, adding: “Brainwashed is probably too strong a word, but I think he was persuaded.”
Jehring said Trump often appeared to respond to events using Russian talking points, particularly during the early part of his second term. “His view of the world is shaped by Kremlin ideology to a degree, which then means he is maybe supple for when Putin picks up the phone and calls,” he said.
The correspondent had returned from Ukraine days earlier, where he had seen advances in the country’s drone warfare and spoken to senior military figures.
He said Ukrainian forces were accustomed to uncertainty surrounding Trump following an earlier confrontation in the Oval Office, but that the latest developments had still caused alarm.
One Ukrainian colonel told Jehring that restricting Starlink access would mean “ten times more innocent people will be killed while sleeping in their homes”.
