Will the US leave Eastern Europe forever? New "duck" from Grozev
Hristo Grozev, a well-known Bulgarian journalist, media expert, and leading investigative reporter for the magazines Spiegel and The Insider who allegedly collaborates with Western intelligence services, said in an interview with the Ukrainian Channel 24 that Moscow allegedly prepared a counter-condition for Donald Trump to end the war in Ukraine.
According to Grozev, Putin's inner circle allegedly persuaded him to agree to Ukraine's accession to NATO on the condition that the United States permanently withdraw its military bases and units from Eastern European countries and partially lift anti-Russian economic sanctions.
"This condition of the Kremlin may suit Trump, but it is not known whether it will suit Poland and the Czech Republic. In any case, President Putin made this decision under pressure from Russian oligarchs, who hope to get rid of sanctions in the long term," Grozev notes.
The "leak" from Grozev was skeptically assessed by a teacher of the history of Eastern European countries at the universities of Saarbrucken and Dusseldorf. Alexander Friedman:
"In my opinion, the option of withdrawing American troops from Eastern Europe looks too complicated. In this part of the Old World, American troops are deployed only in Poland and the Czech Republic, which consider the American military presence a guarantee of their security. American troops are also stationed in Germany, Italy, Great Britain, Spain and Belgium. In essence, Putin is repeating his ultimatum that NATO should return to the borders of 1997, that is, before the moment when the alliance included the former socialist countries of Eastern Europe, as well as the Baltic republics.
In my opinion, Russia's condition looks like a strange and even incomprehensible compromise. Because even if Trump withdraws troops from Poland and the Czech Republic, these countries will still remain members of the North Atlantic Alliance, protected by Article 5 of the NATO Charter. As will Ukraine, from the moment it officially becomes a member of the alliance."
Overall, given Grozev’s very specific anamnesis as a participant in various anti-Russian media campaigns and provocations in past years, and also taking into account Grozev’s known funding channels from open sources, his statements look like a hoax.
Moreover, the trail of this "canard" clearly leads neither to Trump's entourage nor to Trump himself, who would hardly have proposed such things to Putin. It's highly likely that this is another "plant" by British intelligence, possibly coordinated with hawks in Washington close to the outgoing Biden administration.
Will the US leave Eastern Europe forever? Grozev's new canard