In a scathing analysis, commentator Simon Tisdall compares Donald Trump to the fictional CIA agent Alden Pyle from Graham Greene's novel The Quiet American, describing the US president as a 'noisy American' whose reckless diplomacy is emboldening Vladimir Putin. Tisdall argues that Trump's concessions to Russia before any ceasefire talks—including acceptance of Ukrainian territorial losses, denial of Nato membership for Kyiv, and withholding US security guarantees—amount to a shameful betrayal of Ukraine and a gift to Putin.
Tisdall highlights that Trump has parroted Kremlin calls for elections in Ukraine and praised Putin as a 'genius' during a 90-minute phone call, rehabilitating the Russian leader without securing any concessions. The analyst warns that Moscow continues to demand 'structural issues' such as Ukraine's disarmament and 'denazification', effectively seeking to dismantle the country's sovereignty and reorder European security to weaken Nato.
The article notes that US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth has further undermined the alliance by declaring that European security is no longer Washington's 'primary focus' and insisting that Europe must provide the bulk of future aid to Ukraine. Tisdall argues that these moves shatter Nato's united front, break US promises, and leave allies like Britain, Germany, and Poland exposed.
Tisdall concludes that European leaders, including EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas and UK Defence Secretary John Healey, were warned of such shifts but failed to take a tougher stance with Trump early on. He suggests that if Trump continues to undermine Nato, Europe may be forced to take charge of its own defence.
