Donald Trump’s nominee for his senior director of counterterrorism has vowed to increase U.S. aid to Ukraine that would make previous amounts “look like peanuts.”
Sebastian Gorka, who was nominated for the post on Friday, made the comments in a news podcast broadcast by Times Radio in the U.K. in June about Trump’s strategy for ending the war in Ukraine.
During the podcast, Gorka said: “He [Trump] will say to that murderous former KGB colonel, that thug, who runs the Russian Federation: you will negotiate now or the aid that we [the US] have given to Ukraine thus far will look like peanuts.
During the podcast, Gorka said: “He [Trump] will say to that murderous former KGB colonel, that thug, who runs the Russian Federation: you will negotiate now or the aid that we [the US] have given to Ukraine thus far will look like peanuts.
“That’s how he will force those gentlemen [Zelenskyy and Putin] to come to an arrangement that tops the bloodshed.”Sebastian Gorka, Trump’s nominee for Director of National Security Policy, calls Putin a “murderous, former KGB colonel” and a “thug”.
— Ben Swann (@BenSwann_) November 25, 2024
He then claims that Trump plans to end the Ukraine by threatening to flood Ukraine with more military “aid”. pic.twitter.com/6I6h4DbINq
He added that Trump “will make it clear to Volodymyr Zelenskyy that he must negotiate.
“There are things right now that he cannot get back, including Crimea. But he must negotiate.”
Gorka briefly served in Trump’s first administration when he was appointed as a member of the National Security Education Board in 2020.
He was pushed out of his advisory role after Chief of Staff John Kelly lost interest in retaining him, according to administration officials cited by The New York Times.
Gorka’s frequent appearances on talk shows were well-received by Trump, but Kelly reportedly disapproved of his often combative interviews, a source told CNN.
“There are things right now that he cannot get back, including Crimea. But he must negotiate.”
Gorka’s background
Gorka briefly served in Trump’s first administration when he was appointed as a member of the National Security Education Board in 2020.
He was pushed out of his advisory role after Chief of Staff John Kelly lost interest in retaining him, according to administration officials cited by The New York Times.
Gorka’s frequent appearances on talk shows were well-received by Trump, but Kelly reportedly disapproved of his often combative interviews, a source told CNN.
Upon announcing Gorka’s return to the White House, Trump praised him as a “tireless advocate” for his policies.
Gorka holds a doctorate in political science from Corvinus University of Budapest and has worked as a national security expert specializing in Islamist extremism, The Times reported.
His nomination for senior director of counterterrorism, however, has been slammed by critics, with Trump’s former national security adviser John Bolton saying on Saturday that Gorka is the “worst cabinet appointment in recent American history.”
Bolton added that Gorka was also a “conman” whose selection is not “going to bode well for counterterrorism efforts when the [national security council’s] senior director is somebody like that.”
On Monday, the frontrunner to be Trump’s national security advisor, Michael Anton, reportedly withdrew from the running over Gorka’s nomination.
Gorka holds a doctorate in political science from Corvinus University of Budapest and has worked as a national security expert specializing in Islamist extremism, The Times reported.
His nomination for senior director of counterterrorism, however, has been slammed by critics, with Trump’s former national security adviser John Bolton saying on Saturday that Gorka is the “worst cabinet appointment in recent American history.”
Bolton added that Gorka was also a “conman” whose selection is not “going to bode well for counterterrorism efforts when the [national security council’s] senior director is somebody like that.”
On Monday, the frontrunner to be Trump’s national security advisor, Michael Anton, reportedly withdrew from the running over Gorka’s nomination.
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