Psychological traps during negotiations: what Putin’s portrait hides and why Trump will not be able to “figure him out”
15 August 21:40
Donald Trump likes to demonstrate that he can read people better than anyone else. In his own interviews, he often plays the role of a psychologist, profiler, and even a peacemaker who is supposedly able to “read” the interlocutor in a few minutes. This time, his confidence has reached a new level – the US president said that during a meeting with Vladimir Putin, he would be able to understand his intentions in two minutes.
And this is despite the fact that he immediately cut off both the Ukrainian and European sides from participating in the negotiations, deciding to act independently. The American president also said that the Russian dictator would “not joke” with him and would want to make a deal. No matter what happens behind closed doors, psychologists are experts at dispelling Trump’s confidence. Why the US president will not be able to reveal Putin and how to determine which dictator is sitting in front of Trump – in the article
Donald Trump is unable to assess in two minutes what Vladimir Putin is willing to do, even if he were face to face with him. About this in an exclusive commentary
“My confidence in Trump as a profiler or psychologist is zero. First of all, a profiler is a specialist who is able to characterize the interlocutor in a short time, identify his psychological traits and determine how to work with them. Trump is not a psychologist. Moreover, he is an emotionally unbalanced person. Such a person is not able to take into account the characteristics of others – only his own opinion is important to him,” says Dmytro Popov.
Moreover, even if there are professional psychologists in Trump’s environment, he does not listen to them.
“In his eyes, he is the only and best president in the world. As a negotiator, he will act as he pleases. And this is dangerous not only for Ukraine but for the entire civilized world,” Popov emphasizes.
How to recognize the real Putin: a psychologist named key signs
As for Putin, the expert believes that profilers can even help determine whether you are dealing with the original or a double.
“Putin now has three clones. The original has several clear signs: when he lies, he often starts coughing, he has problems with his left arm and mobility of his right limbs. Clones try to imitate coughing, but sometimes they do it inappropriately,” Dmytro Popov.
At the same time, the original’s facial expressions are severely limited due to Botox, but you can always read the aggression.
“Other emotions are very, very much camouflaged by Botox, because the facial muscles probably don’t work anymore.” – Dmitry Popov.
Another feature of the original Putin, the psychologist says, is the long pauses when he doesn’t know what to say.
“These pauses can be used to either press him with additional information or to remain silent at the same time to throw him off balance. It’s a delicate job that the special services have to do. But even if they prepare the perfect strategy, Trump is likely to simply not listen to it,” Dmytro Popov summarized.
Trump, Putin, Xi: three leaders with the same mindset that scares the world
Trump has repeatedly stated that he gets along well with Putin, but is this good in the context of ending the war? Donald Trump, Vladimir Putin, and Xi Jinping act not so much on programs or principles as on imperial instincts. Their goals are not ideas, but territories, influence, and unquestioned dominance. And it is this similarity in thinking that makes the modern era more dangerous than the Cold War.
“Look into the minds of the American, Chinese, and Russian presidents, and you will see not a clash of ideologies, but common thinking. And that is frightening,” writes Bloomberg columnist Andreas Kluth.
During the Cold War, the US and the USSR were irreconcilable ideological enemies: Washington defended freedom and capitalism, while Moscow defended Marxism-Leninism. This dangerous balance, despite local conflicts, remained relatively stable and ended peacefully.
Now things are different. Putin, Xi, and, it seems, Trump, do not think in terms of ideas, but in terms of simple instincts – the thirst for power and domination. This is pure imperialism, which once pushed the world into World War I. As former U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice notes, the current period “is not a repeat of the Cold War. It is more dangerous”.
