MILWAUKEE — Former President Donald Trump warned in his speech at the Republican National Convention on Thursday that “the planet” is on the brink of “World War III.”
“And now we have an international crisis the likes of which the world has never seen before,” the Republican presidential candidate said in a speech at the Fiserv Forum.
“With wars currently raging in Europe and the Middle East and conflict looming over Taiwan, Korea, the Philippines and across Asia, the planet is on the brink of World War III,” he added. “It will be a war unlike any we’ve ever seen before.”
The 78-year-old Trump claimed during the election campaign that he could end Russia’s war in Ukraine in a day, and in public he has called on Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to quickly end the war against Hamas.
Trump has repeatedly blamed 81-year-old President Biden for both conflicts and claims neither happened under his command.
“I will end every international crisis that this Administration has created, including the horrific wars with Russia and Ukraine that would never have happened if I were President, and the war sparked by the attack on Israel that would never have happened if I was President,” Trump said in his keynote address.
The former commander in chief boasted that he was “the first president in modern times not to start a new war.”
“There was peace in Europe and the Middle East,” Trump said.
The 45th president also attacked his two predecessors, blaming former presidents George W. Bush and Barack Obama for earlier Russian land grabs.
“Under President Bush, Russia invaded Georgia. Under President Obama, Russia took Crimea. Under this administration, Russia is going after Ukraine,” Trump said.
“Russia didn’t take anything under President Trump,” he added.
The Republican presidential candidate argued that the Biden administration’s messy withdrawal from Afghanistan in 2021 fueled Russian aggression, emboldened Hamas attacks on Israel and led to military saber-rattling by China.
“Emboldened by that disaster, Russia invaded Ukraine. Israel has endured the worst attack in history. Now China is besieging Taiwan and Russian warships and nuclear submarines are operating within 60 miles of our coast in Cuba,” Trump argued.
Trump’s speech marked the end of the four-day Republican National Convention and marked his formal nomination as the party’s presidential candidate.
