Alexander Vindman on Why It’s the ‘Beginning of the End’ for Putin

Matter of Opinion

New York Times Opinion

Society & Culture, Ross Douthat, News, New York Times, Journalism

4.2 • 7.2K Ratings

🗓️ 2 March 2022

⏱️ 36 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

In the days since Vladimir Putin ordered Russian forces to invade Ukraine, its citizens have taken up arms to defend their borders and their right to self-determination. Where is the rest of the world in all of this? To help understand the current situation and how we got here, Jane Coaston talks with Alexander Vindman, a retired Army lieutenant colonel who was the director for European and Russian affairs at the National Security Council from 2018 to 2020. Vindman was also a key witness at Donald Trump’s first impeachment trial, having listened in on the notorious 2019 call in which Trump asked President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine to investigate Joe Biden. Vindman says of the Western response to the invasion, “We need to drop these incremental approaches that are intended for a kind of peacetime environment,” because “we’re in a new Cold War.” What is your take on Russia’s invasion of Ukraine? We want to hear from you. Share your thoughts in the comments on The New York Times website once you’ve listened to the debate.

Transcript

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0:00.0	I'm Jane Kostin.
0:03.6	Alexander Vindman was three when his family fled Ukraine to build a better life in the
0:07.4	United States.
0:08.9	In the four decades since then, Vindman has been an officer in the US Army, studied Ukrainian
0:13.9	affairs at Harvard, and served as a member of the White House's National Security Council
0:18.6	specializing in Eastern Europe.
0:20.7	And it was in that last rule that America came to know Vindman's name.
0:24.5	On July 25th, 2019, the call occurred.
0:27.0	I listened in on the call in the situation room with White House colleagues.
0:32.3	I was concerned by the call.
0:34.6	What I heard was inappropriate, and I reported my concerns.
0:37.4	He was the first White House official to testify about the July 25th call between President
0:41.6	Trump and President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine, a call that would lead to Trump's first
0:46.1	impeachment.
0:47.1	It is improper for the President of the United States to demand a foreign government
0:50.6	investigate a US citizen and a political opponent.
0:54.7	After Trump's acquittal, Vindman was fired from his job at the NSC, and he retired from
0:58.5	the Army the following year.
1:00.2	He has an absolutely singular perspective on what is happening right now in Ukraine.
1:04.4	What we can expect, how we got here, and maybe most importantly, what we're still getting
1:08.7	wrong.
1:10.3	Alexander Vindman, welcome to the argument.
	...

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