The recent revelation that Donald Trump spoke to one of America’s most dangerous adversaries, Russian President Vladimir Putin, in the run-up to our presidential election raises serious questions about his judgment and fitness to be a commander in chief and the danger he represents. would pose for America’s security, if elected.

The revelations about the former president’s actions, as reported in Bob Woodward’s soon-to-be-published book “War,” are a chilling reminder of how Trump would endanger democracy and the security of our country if he won this year. His continued contacts with Putin after his 2020 election defeat, including after Russia’s illegal invasion of Ukraine in 2022, which he neither made public nor shared with the Biden-Harris administration, highlight highlights the dangerous game the two men are playing. We should be concerned that Trump is undermining U.S. national security for his own personal gain.

Here’s how Trump and Putin play their game: Trump has praised Putin multiple times, including right after Russia launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine. He then urged Putin to attack our NATO allies and echoed the Kremlin’s comments on Ukraine.

In fact, not once in the past four years has Trump called on Putin to stop his repeated threats to use nuclear weapons against the West, instead blaming the United States and President Biden for responsibility. of Russian belligerence. And not once has he publicly confronted Putin and demanded an end to his brutal and illegal war against Ukraine.

In return, Putin, Russia and their proxies have incentives to interfere in the 2024 elections through covert means, influence operations and disinformation. They did this in 2016 and 2020, each time with the aim of helping Donald Trump. Remember, during the 2016 presidential campaign, then-candidate Trump said: “Russia, if you’re listening, I hope you can find the 30,000 emails that are missing. » He asked for Putin’s help and got it.

Then, while Trump was president, he sided with Putin over U.S. intelligence officials regarding Russian interference in the election, thereby giving Putin a free pass to undermine our democracy. He also shared sensitive U.S. intelligence with Russian Foreign Minister Lavrov and Russian Ambassador to the United States Sergei Kislyak during their visit to the White House in 2017. During this meeting, which took place Just a day after Trump fired FBI Director James Comey, he told Russian officials in 2017 in the Oval Office: “I just fired the head of the FBI. He was crazy, a real weirdo. I was under a lot of pressure because of Russia. This has been removed…I am not under investigation.

The history of this relationship is extensive, well-documented and deeply disturbing. And one thing is clear: Trump is a Trojan horse for Russia. But instead of being hidden, his partnership with Putin is visible to all of us.

And what did Trump do with his alleged direct access to Putin? Clearly, this does little, if anything, to advance U.S. national security interests. In fact, while we don’t know the full extent of the discussions he had with Putin, we do know some of the results. Not once in the past four years has he openly called on Putin to back down from his repeated threats to use nuclear weapons against the West, instead blaming the United States and President Biden for the belligerence of the Russia, notably the war in Ukraine. And not once has he publicly confronted the war criminal Putin and demanded an end to his brutal and illegal war against Ukraine.

Trump’s policy positions on Ukraine align with Putin’s interests, now threatening during his presidential campaign to withhold US military assistance to Ukraine, arguing unconvincingly that this would end the war within 24 hours. But his plan to end the war is a mirage and his capitulation to Putin would only reward his aggression, possibly forcing Ukraine to cede illegally seized Ukrainian territory to Russia, as the presidential candidate has proposed. Trump’s vice-president, JD Vance.

The truth is that giving Putin a victory in Ukraine, along with Trump’s threats to weaken NATO, would put our own national security at risk. This impacts allies, such as Poland, the Nordic and Baltic states, who could be the next targets in Putin’s crosshairs. They worry about U.S. support, as Trump has expressed doubts about whether he can defend NATO allies, despite treaty obligations.

All Americans should be concerned about the Trump-Putin relationship and its impact on our security ahead of the November election. They deserve to know what Trump talked about with Putin on these calls. Without this knowledge, we can only assume the worst. Americans deserve a patriotic, honest, and transparent president who is willing to fight to ensure our security, sovereignty, and independence.

Our great democracy is not a bargaining chip for Trump’s personal gain.

Jonathan Katz served as deputy assistant administrator for Europe and Eurasia at the U.S. Agency for International Development. Joel Rubin, a Pittsburgh native, served as assistant secretary of state for legislative affairs in the U.S. Department of State. Both served in the Obama administration.