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submitted 10 months ago by geese_feces@hexbear.net to c/news@hexbear.net

“I told them [Ukraine] that I want the equivalent like $500B worth of rare earth. And they've essentially agreed to do that so at least we don’t feel stupid,” Trump said.

“Otherwise, we're stupid. I said to them we have to — 'we have to get something. We can’t continue to pay this money,'” he added.

“The Americans helped the most, and therefore the Americans should earn the most,” Zelenskyy said Friday in an interview with Reuters.

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[-] Assian_Candor@hexbear.net 23 points 10 months ago* (last edited 10 months ago)

Can't decide if this is better or worse

Edit: I have decided this is worse

[-] Awoo@hexbear.net 46 points 10 months ago

This was going to be the result whether or not Trump screamed it from the rooftops for his own political vanity.

I believe naked imperialism will be easier to fight than the competent imperialism that previously hid itself.

[-] LanyrdSkynrd@hexbear.net 30 points 10 months ago

I've been thinking about this lately.

Trump being so open about imperialism will make it easier to convince people that the US war machine is about profits, but it also makes it easier to convince them that imperialism is necessary to maintain their economic privilege. It's easier for people to be against something bad when they don't think they're getting any benefit from it.

I don't think those minerals will benefit anyone but the ruling class, but your average American could be easily convinced they will.

[-] Cimbazarov@hexbear.net 25 points 10 months ago

Yea, although there are still people who think this is just unique to Trump and the democrats/Biden were the good guys using diplomacy rather than force and blackmail

[-] anarchoilluminati@hexbear.net 1 points 10 months ago

I've thought about this explicitness being easier to identify too.

However, you make a good point that libs will just act like it's a specifically Trumpian evil. I also remember that no one pays attention to anything and if they do hear about something then they just generally dismiss it in some form or another, so I don't know if previously unaware people will be any differently disposed at all.

[-] SadArtemis@hexbear.net 22 points 10 months ago

This was already the reality on paper, the only difference is Trump is saying it out loud.

Blackrock and other US corporate giants basically own Ukraine at this point. Zelensky himself has talked about how Ukraine "takes credit" and the Banderite state literally runs its own official site to auction off state assets to western vultures.

That said, this is as good as it gets (IMO). The leader of the ""free world"" is going mask-off as a naked imperialist, but the mineral wealth lies safely in the hands of Russia and the global majority (as it is concentrated in eastern former Ukraine) and therefore will not enrich the west.

[-] ComradeSpahija@hexbear.net 17 points 10 months ago
this post was submitted on 11 Feb 2025
109 points (100.0% liked)

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