In his first cabinet appointment following his resounding election victory, US President-elect Donald Trump indicated his intention to break with the policies of the previous government by speaking with Vladimir Putin on Thursday.
The White House chief of staff will be Susie Wiles, Trump’s campaign manager. Wiles is the first woman appointed to the prominent position and the Republican’s first appointment to his incoming government.
Two days after Election Day, and two and a half months before he returns to the White House, Trump’s resounding victory against Democrat Kamala Harris is already upending US and global politics.
Putin, the Russian president, hailed Trump as “courageous” for the way he handled himself following an assassination attempt at a rally in July, and said he was “ready” to hold discussions with him.
After winning, billionaire Trump told NBC News that he had not spoken to Putin, the autocrat whom he has lauded for years, but “I think we’ll speak.”
It emphasised Trump’s criticism of US support for Kyiv and signalled a dramatic break from the cold quiet between Biden and Putin since Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022.
In a conversation with Trump on Wednesday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky described calls for a ceasefire as “dangerous.” The president-elect has previously stated that he will push through a peace agreement in that conflict.
Chinese President Xi Jinping had earlier joined the list of foreign leaders congratulating Trump, who was criticized by Harris during the election campaign for being too friendly with autocrats.
Trump doubled down on his plans for mass deportations of undocumented migrants, telling NBC he had “no choice” and that there could be “no price tag” that was too much.
