Donald Trump Says That He Would Threaten Russia With Nuclear Weapons If He Was Still President

During his presidency, Donald Trump once threatened to wipe Afghanistan off the map. He also “joked” that his nuclear button was bigger than that of Kim Jung-un of North Korea, which could be viewed as a veiled threat (rather thinly veiled, at that). He also apparently repeatedly asked why the United States could not use nuclear weapons, since we had them. He was asking seriously, too. Had Trump decided to use them in Afghanistan, he might have seriously risked triggering World War III. After all, one of the countries that Afghanistan borders is China, a nuclear power. Also, the airborne toxic residue from such an attack would not only have greatly affected China, but likely Russia and other countries, as well. Most likely, it would have assured some kind of retaliation.  

Yet, Trump wanted to reassure everyone that he knows what he is doing. That he would be in complete control of the situation. Many of his loyal followers simply believed – and continue to believe – him.  

Trump became the first leader of a major world power to seemingly frivolously threaten a nuclear strike on another nation, and seemingly not to fully understand or appreciate just how quickly a situation like that could escalate with other nuclear powers. Now, however, we have a second major world leader who seems intent on making light of nuclear threats. Remember, Putin promised retaliation against the West the likes of which they had never seen if they intervened with his war in Ukraine. Most people acknowledge that this was a threat of nuclear strikes of some sort. In turn, NATO officials reminded Putin that they, too, have nuclear weapons.

Somehow, having two hotheaded, irrational leaders of the two leading nuclear powers of the world playing chicken with one another using nuclear threats does not seem to me a good way of trying to deescalate the conflict in Ukraine. In fact, that seems to be playing with fire, even while supporters on both sides assure the rest of us that their leader knows exactly what he is doing, and is in complete control, and will inevitably emerge victorious. Frankly, that seems like a recipe for disaster.