“And every time Donald Trump takes a new public stance, the face on the portrait gifted by Putin becomes even more grotesque.”
Donald Trump’s special envoy, Steve Witkoff, told Tucker Carlson in an interview published on March 21 that Vladimir Putin prayed for Trump on the day of the assassination attempt, alongside a priest. Putin also sent Trump a gift via Witkoff – a portrait.
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Symbolic, isn’t it? In the midst of the war in Ukraine, destroyed cities, thousands of civilians killed, and kidnapped children, such a gesture sounds not just absurd – but chilling.
This news reads like a fragment from a dystopia – or rather, a continuation of Oscar Wilde’s novel “The Picture of Dorian Gray.”
In the original, the portrait absorbs the moral degradation of its subject while preserving his outward youth. In our reality, Donald Trump seems to have found a dark mentor far more dangerous than Wilde’s Lord Henry – Russian President Vladimir Putin.
When Putin prays for Trump, it’s not a metaphor. It’s a geopolitical investment.
The growing shadow
Since 2016, Trump’s ties to Putin have raised growing concern. But recent statements are no longer hidden behind diplomacy or silence. This is open autocrat worship – the transformation of American politics into a private game of geopolitical cynicism.
When Putin prays for Trump, it’s not a metaphor. It’s a geopolitical investment – a bet on the resurgence of forces for whom a free Ukraine and a united Europe are a thorn in the side.
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The portrait
Whether Trump actually owns a portrait from Putin or where it’s displayed doesn’t matter. Each political move, each interview, every “mistaken” comment about NATO or Ukraine is another brushstroke on that portrait. And with each passing day, it grows darker. Trump tries to project the image of a winner, but what does that “portrait” really show? Appeasement of dictators. Statements that destabilize support for Ukraine. A toxic “America first” that forgets democracy thrives on solidarity.
A mirror for America
This “portrait” is not only an image of Trump. It’s a mirror that the American voter must face. Are they ready to choose a man favored by a dictator in the East? Do they realize that behind every such prayer and gesture of friendship from Putin lies the very real, largest war in 79 years – one that Ukraine lives through daily, with millions of shattered lives?
Unaesthetic outcome
Dorian Gray once looked at his portrait – and recoiled in fear. But for Trump, the portrait gifted by Putin is not a warning. It’s a medal, a token of honor, a symbol of belonging to the club of autocrats.
As long as he embraces it, every such “prayer” from Putin is another shot fired at the future of the democratic world – a grim threat to the ideals and freedoms that led humanity toward democracy and a people-centered global order.
Civilizations have always endured such trials painfully, but humanity has chosen the right path – the path of good. The symbolism of Wilde’s novel is equally clear: retribution is inevitable. Even if some are temporarily seduced by evil, the truth always catches up.
Every thinking person on this planet understands this – just as Oscar Wilde did when he created his masterpiece.
The views expressed in this opinion article are the author’s and not necessarily those of Kyiv Post.
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