Former White House strategist Steve Bannon has warned that US President Donald Trump could become more deeply embroiled in the Ukraine conflict if he does not take immediate action to limit Washington’s involvement.
In an interview with Politico, published on Monday, Bannon compared the situation to the way former US President Richard Nixon handled the Vietnam War, where the conflict was inherited from the previous administration and ultimately defined Nixon’s presidency.
“If we don’t pay attention, it will be Trump’s Vietnam. Exactly that is what happened with Richard Nixon. In the end, the war belonged to him, and he went down in history as the war of his, not of Lyndon Johnson’s” Bannon, who is no longer a key figure in Trump’s team, said.
He argued that the conflict could overshadow his presidency if Trump does not commit to stopping military aid to Ukraine.
Nixon was elected in 1968 on a promise to end the war, but he escalated the US engagement through extensive bombing and incursions into Cambodia and Laos before eventually negotiating a withdrawal from Vietnam. The war became a decisive and controversial issue of his presidency.
Donald Trump has repeatedly stated during his 2024 re-election campaign that he would end the Ukraine conflict “within 24 hours” of being re-elected, but has never provided specific details on how he would do so. The Trump team now says it may take half a year to resolve the conflict.
Trump has criticized US military aid to Ukraine, but has not explicitly stated that he would stop the aid. Bannon had pushed the designated US president to make a clear statement in his inaugural address.
Russia reacted with skepticism to Trump’s promise to quickly resolve the conflict, with Kremlin spokesman Dmitri Peskov questioning the feasibility of a rapid solution. Moscow has insisted that any peace agreement must acknowledge the new territorial realities and address the root causes of the conflict.
Meanwhile, the Trump team is reportedly preparing a phone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin, which could take place shortly after Trump’s inauguration, according to CNN on Sunday. The main goal of the conversation is to arrange a personal meeting to explore possibilities for resolving the Ukraine conflict.
Peskov stated that Putin is open to negotiations with the US president without preconditions, but noted that there have been no substantial preparations for the talks so far. Putin has already congratulated Trump on his inauguration.