Posted on 10/23/2025 11:40:34 AM PDT by Tench_Coxe
Let’s put the events of the last 72 hours into context.
On Monday and Tuesday, Russian oil refineries in NATO countries Hungary and Romania suddenly, and simultaneously, have mysterious explosions and catastrophic fires {citation}}. On Wednesday, NATO head Mark Rutte comes to visit President Trump in the White House, and at the end of the day, the same Russian company, Lukoil, whose refinery exploded in Romania, suddenly becomes sanctioned by the U.S. Treasury. These events are not disconnected.
President Trump then disputes a Wall Street Journal report, further saying he did not give approval, nor does he know where NATO long-range missiles are coming from that were launched from Ukraine into Russia.
(snip)
President Trump saying, “wherever they may come from,” is alarming in itself. We all know that British PM Starmer, French President Macron, German Chancellor Merz and NATO Secretary Mark Rutte are all in alignment to push NATO into a direct conflict with Russia using the non-NATO state of Ukraine to do it.
(Excerpt) Read more at theconservativetreehouse.com ...
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Trump is a smart guy. I think the Euros think they can play him.
Given this: Europe, the EU & Russian Frozen Assets: Short-Sighted or Necessary?
"Reports are circulating that European Union leaders are moving toward using an estimated $300 billion in frozen Russian assets—held in European banks—to support Ukraine’s war effort."
Money is fungible. But if the US 'sells weapons to NATO', but the EU uses the frozen assets to do so, that would be the geopolitical analogue to buying stolen merchandise out of the back of LaShawn's van.
Hungary and Romania were both processing Russian oil.
Is Trump playing 4D chess?
Or is he getting played by the same DC neocons, like Bolton and Pompeo in 2017?
Or does he actually think he can manipulate Russia into making deals they wouldn’t otherwise agree to?
Certainly, no one here knows for sure. I imagine most people around him don’t even know.
The president has tried rather hard to get Putin to negotiate an end to the war, and that clearly isn’t working at this point in time. So now he’s starting to get more of the “big stick” approach.
More pressure on Russia to back off...
If NATO goes to war against Putin’s Russia it will be because Putin undeniably attacked a NATO country.
US is selling weapons to NATO so they can resell or gift them to Ukraine. That way the US gets paid for very expensive weapons and Putin gets the business end. WinWin
Which European Capital gets hit first? How long does NATO have the stomach for war when their capital is bombed and their army takes casualties? Wars are easy to start and difficult to end.
Eighty years since the end of the last world war. Those with direct memory of it, no longer hold any power.
Those with little sense, who have not lived it, perhaps think a world War is ‘winnable’. THIS war WILL BE the WAR TO END ALL WARS.
They don’t realize that they will be fighting against HIM!
Lord, please take me hole before it starts!
“Is Trump playing 4D chess? Or is he getting played by the same DC neocons,”
Maybe I’m missing something. Help me understand what it is that looks like Trump is getting played.
They're probably tired of playing video games all day and raping young girls.
Knock yourselves out Euro-weenies.
It will only take three small nukes to wipe out ALL of leftwing England. Another one for leftwing Paris and another for leftwing Brussels.
They are going to get their wish.
Eventually Russia is going to have enough of our proxies attacking Russia’s energy infrastructure and other strategic targets and will attack whatever NATO country they think is behind the attack. Then the US will be drawn in by Article 5. How can Trump just allow NATO to call the shots on this? Europe by itself has no chance of defeating Russia and you can be sure that they intend to draw us into war one way or another.
[THIS war WILL BE the WAR TO END ALL WARS.]
It could get very interesting 🤔🤔🤔
🛐🛐🙏🙏✝️✝️
I see no chance that Putin will steamroll Europe and be in Paris in 6 months (or whatever).
I also see no chance that the UK, France and/or Germany will be able to field mighty armies full of virile young men eager to do bloody battle against the Russian horde.
I predict (at worst) a pretend war in which there is a lot of posturing but no big battles, and no adjustments to national borders.
The US is foolish indeed if we allow ourselves to get sucked into this. Because if we put boots on the ground, it will get more serious and a lot more people will die.
From the article:
but rather the alarming issue of questioning whether President Trump is getting accurate information from the U.S. intelligence apparatus to make sound decisions. President Trump has abdicated the conflict decision-making to the NATO “coalition of the willing”, while the USA remains in NATO as a sideline observer.
CTH is effectively asking - who is providing intel to Trump and making these decisions?
The Russian Federation President can clearly see what NATO (sans Trump) is trying to do, even if the advisors around President Trump are not being fulsome with their information about what NATO is trying to do.
In fact, it's nearly the entire thrust of the article. Yes, CTH is saying its possibly "Trump is being played."
I just implemented sanctions that are increasing oil and gas prices, which, if that continues, will accelerate inflation.
Hungary and Romania were both attacked. Just like Nordstream, does anyone want to argue the Russians were blowing up their own/JV oil infrastructure that earns them foreign exchange?
So will Ukraine, the UK MI6, or whoever perpetrated the attacks have "Article 5" invoked against them?
It's clear Article 5 is joke. So too is NATO. They are a threat to world peace.
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