Donald Trump’s stance on Russia appears to have shifted. Once seen as soft on Vladimir Putin, a leaked audio tape obtained by CNN reveals Trump allegedly threatened to bomb Moscow if Russia invaded Ukraine. Russia has since responded.
U.S.–Russia relations have been tense since Russia invaded Ukraine three years ago. Trump previously claimed to have a good relationship with Putin and once said he could end the war in 24 hours, asserting, “I believe he wants peace.”
However, Trump’s tone has changed. Recently, he said Putin was “throwing a lot of bullsh*t at the US” and expressed being “very unhappy” with him.
According to CNN, during a 2024 campaign fundraiser, Trump told donors he warned Putin: “If you go into Ukraine, I’m going to bomb the sh*t out of Moscow.” He also said he gave a similar warning to China’s President Xi over Taiwan.
The audio was also cited in the book 2024 by Josh Dawsey, Tyler Pager, and Isaac Arnsdorf. Neither Trump nor his team has commented on the recordings, and it’s unclear when or where the alleged conversation took place.
In response, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said there were no phone calls between Trump and Putin during Trump’s time out of office and questioned the tape’s authenticity, citing the rise in fake news.