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📰 Putin to Trump: Let the Bargaining Begin The Showdown in Caracas America’s lightning raid in Venezuela—snatching President Nicolás Maduro and installing a new interim regime—sent shockwaves through Moscow. The Kremlin’s response? Unusually restrained. No fiery speeches, no threats of war. Just a few pro forma condemnations, a hint of admiration for Trump’s “consistency,” and a quick endorsement of Venezuela’s new leader. Why the silence? Because, for Putin, Venezuela isn’t worth a fight—not when Ukraine is still on the table. “Trump has just demonstrated his determination and appetite for escalation,” said Kirill Rogov, a Moscow analyst. “This will have a strong impact on the Kremlin and the Russian elite.” ​ The Logic of Power Behind the scenes, Russia’s leadership knows the score: Trump’s Venezuela gambit is a message to every strongman. “Might makes right,” as Stephen Miller put it—language Putin understands better than anyone. The Kremlin, once eager to defend allies, now sees opportunity. By letting Trump flex in Latin America, Putin hopes to secure a free hand in Ukraine, or at least buy more time. “Russia will simply exploit Trump’s use of force in Venezuela to argue that if America can be aggressive in its backyard, likewise for Russia in its ‘near abroad,’” said Fiona Hill, a Russia expert at Brookings. ​ The Unspoken Bargain For years, Russian officials have floated a strange deal: let the US run Venezuela, and Moscow gets Ukraine. Trump’s actions now make that logic explicit. As one Kremlin mouthpiece put it: “The unipolar world is collapsing... and the alliance with Russia is part of that effort to build a multipolar world.” ​ The Real Winner? Not Venezuela. Not Ukraine. The real winner is the new world order—one where force trumps law, and superpowers haggle over spheres of influence like mob bosses dividing turf. Putin knows the game. He’s just waiting for Trump’s next move. “Trump’s goodwill toward Russia is a prerequisite for Putin’s delaying tactics in Ukraine,” says the DGAP think tank. “He can hope that Trump will blackmail Zelensky at the negotiating table into conceding what Russia cannot yet win on the battlefield.” ​ #putin#trump#venezuela#ukraine#multipolarworld#bargaining 📱American Оbserver - Stay up to date on all important events 🇺🇸