Timothy Ash, an associate fellow in the Russia and Eurasia Programme at Chatham House, said, 'Putin thinks Trump is soft on Russia and will roll over to give him a great deal on Ukraine, cutting military support to Ukraine and lifting sanctions on Russia.' Thus, it's suggested that Putin may prefer Trump due to a perceived alignment in their leadership styles and objectives.
Ash elaborated further, stating, 'I think Putin looks at Trump and sees a mirror image of himself, an authoritarian, sociopath. He likely thinks he understands Trump.' This highlights the underlying psychological parallels that Putin perceives between himself and Trump.
Putin’s intent to sow disunity within Western alliances is apparent; as Ash notes, 'Putin hates the system of Western liberal market democracy... He thinks Trump will continue where he left off in Trump 1.0 in sowing disunity and chaos.' This points to a broader intention to destabilize Western democratic institutions.
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