Former US president Donald Trump joked that Washington should “bomb the s***” out of Russia using F-22 fighter jets emblazoned with the Chinese flag during a speech to Republican National Committee donors on Saturday.
“And then we say, China did it,” he continued, according to CBS News, which cited sources present at the event. “Then they start fighting with each other, and we sit back and watch.”
The audience reportedly got a good chuckle out of the president’s suggestion, which they may or may not have considered during the runup to Russia’s military operation in Ukraine, a period in which Secretary of State Antony Blinken dropped the phrase “false flag” on a near-daily basis.
Unlike the US and its allies, China has deliberately avoided being swept up in the sanctions frenzy triggered by the conflict in Ukraine, remaining studiously neutral. Beijing has obvious advantages to gain by the US tying up its finances and war machine in a drawn-out conflict with another world power, and while some Chinese entities have withdrawn from doing business with Russia, others have seized the opportunity created by the financial troubles being waged on Russia and inked major deals with the country.
The Chinese Foreign Ministry has denounced what it referred to as “illegal unilateral sanctions” imposed on Russia in response to the offensive, ordering the West to steer clear of “harm[ing] the legitimate rights and interests of China and other parties” with its financial punishments.
Trump was eviscerated in the media last month for describing Russian President Vladimir Putin as “savvy” and “brilliant” for his actions in Ukraine, words which triggered many of the same pundits who made their careers denouncing him as a Russian puppet. He subsequently pivoted to blaming current President Joe Biden for being insufficiently tough on Putin, insisting “nobody has ever been tougher on Russia than [Trump]” and arguing that had he remained president, Putin would never have started an offensive against Ukraine.
Trump also had harsh words for NATO, however, dismissing the transatlantic alliance as a “paper tiger.” During his presidency, he repeatedly complained about NATO allies not paying their fair share of the costs required to run the alliance and threatened to leave the group entirely. However, he never followed through on those threats and it’s unclear whether he was actually serious.
The former president touched on a series of familiar topics during his speech, from the “rigged” 2020 election to climate change being a “hoax”. According to a recent CBS poll, 69% of Republicans want Trump to run for president again in 2024, and the former president has teased such a campaign, promising “we will see a Republican president reclaim that magnificent White House in 2024,” according to the source. “I wonder who that might be,” he continued.