No Edits, No Excuses: The Raw Transcript on Trump’s Russian Ties

Editor's Note:

The staff at Closer to the Edge is still recovering from the relentless onslaught of grim and absurd headlines that assault us daily. Each new development feels like a fresh dose of surrealism, a reminder that reality continues to outpace fiction. In times like these, stepping back and letting the raw material speak for itself is often the best course of action.

What follows is an unedited English translation of a recent discussion from the Ukrainian YouTube channel Телеканал Прямий featuring Sergey Zhirnov, a former Soviet KGB illegal who defected and now lives in France. The transcript is presented exactly as it was transcribed, without alteration for clarity, coherence, or comfort. The statements, claims, and conclusions contained within belong to the speakers alone.

Brace yourselves.

English Translation of the YouTube Transcript:

0:00

Sergey, my first question is just a warm-up, and then, of course, we will unravel it together like a ball of yarn.

0:07

Did Putin recruit Trump? You can take this literally or figuratively if you like. I've heard many stories about people who, after interacting with Putin—even just talking with him—felt some sort of power or influence. He knows how to talk to people, and we know that he and Trump have met before.

0:13

We have plenty of evidence that Trump was, in a way, enthralled by Putin. So, did Putin recruit Trump?

0:31

Yes, Putin made Trump fall in love with him—he got inside Trump's head, without a doubt. This happened in 2018, which, by the way, caused a scandal.

0:39

Let me remind you: they met in Helsinki in July 2018. This happened just four months after the Skripal poisoning in London. At that time, the situation was extremely tense. A total of 152 GRU spies were expelled from various countries worldwide.

0:51

Russia's representatives were also removed from NATO headquarters in Brussels. And yet, despite everything, Trump insisted on meeting personally with Putin.

1:03

He had obstacles before that, too. When he took office in 2017, he couldn’t immediately arrange a meeting because Obama had left him a difficult legacy.

1:12

In December 2016, Obama expelled 35 Russian spies from Washington and New York. In response, Russia expelled American spies from the U.S. Embassy in Moscow. This damaged relations.

1:25

If Trump had immediately tried to repair this upon entering the White House, he would have been accused of exactly what he was already being suspected of—that Russia helped him become president.

1:36

At that time, there was a large-scale investigation. The FBI, the Department of Justice, and Special Counsel Robert Mueller were all looking into Trump's ties with Russia.

1:48

Was there an official recruitment by Russian intelligence—by the KGB or FSB? No one knows for sure, except for Putin, Bortnikov, and Patrushev. They have the intelligence archives.

2:21

Trump first visited the Soviet Union in 1987, which was exactly when I was serving in the KGB. So, I can tell you from an insider’s perspective how I see it.

2:41

Back then, he was already a wealthy man—a millionaire, if not a billionaire. And when an American billionaire declares he is traveling to the Soviet Union in 1987, during Gorbachev’s perestroika, that raises red flags.

2:55

His visa application would have immediately triggered alerts at the Soviet embassy in Washington or the consulate in New York. The KGB would have immediately taken notice.

3:24

An American businessman with big money? The KGB understood that any rich American had political and business connections—whether they wanted to or not.

3:50

Back then, Trump had ties to the Democratic Party. He was donating to Democrats and seemed interested in a political career, though that didn’t work out at the time.

4:06

As someone who served in the KGB during that era, I can guarantee you: When Trump arrived in Moscow in 1987, from the moment he landed at Sheremetyevo Airport, he was surrounded by KGB agents.

4:27

His drivers, tour guides, hotel staff, waiters, cleaners—every person he interacted with was an informant. Whether it was through the Soviet Chamber of Commerce or a joint Soviet-American business association, every person he met was part of the KGB’s network.

5:04

They all reported on their conversations with him. This was all compiled into intelligence files. If it wasn’t an official surveillance dossier yet, it was at least an operational correspondence file.

5:43

The KGB’s foreign intelligence service and counterintelligence service would have opened a preliminary file on Trump the moment he applied for a visa. The Soviet intelligence residency in Washington and New York would have sent reports about him back to Moscow.

6:15

By the time he arrived, they already knew his background, his financial history, and his political aspirations.

6:59

When he stayed in Soviet hotels, he was undoubtedly surrounded by women of a certain profession—who were, of course, all KGB informants. The KGB controlled all the high-end escorts who serviced foreign visitors.

7:16

You couldn’t work as a prostitute in an Intourist hotel unless you collaborated with the KGB. That was the rule in the Soviet Union.

7:28

His hotel room would have been bugged with microphones and possibly cameras. If he engaged in any compromising activities, it was all recorded and stored.

8:00

Later, when he sought to do business in Moscow, such as trying to build Trump Tower, he would have had to negotiate with local officials and, likely, pay bribes. Every interaction would have been documented by the KGB.

9:02

Over the years, Russian intelligence would have continued monitoring him, keeping in touch through its operatives in the U.S.

9:55

As for Trump, we don’t know the full extent of the kompromat they gathered on him. But they certainly have something.

10:28

For an ordinary wealthy businessman, being caught with prostitutes could be a disaster—it could ruin a marriage, lead to divorce, and cause public scandal.

11:11

For Trump, though? A sex scandal wouldn’t hurt him; it might even boost his image among his supporters.

12:58

But the real issue isn’t just kompromat—it’s manipulation. Trump is highly narcissistic, which makes him incredibly easy to manipulate. Intelligence services know this well.

17:11

Putin is a chameleon. He mirrors people, making them feel understood, respected, and admired. This is how he gets inside their heads. He did it to Trump in 2018 in Helsinki.

18:39

That press conference was a disaster. Trump outright said he trusted Putin more than his own intelligence agencies. Schwarzenegger even called it outright treason.

20:38

Now, Trump is back and openly siding with Russia again. His recent comments attacking Zelensky and Ukraine are not just policy choices—they’re personal vendettas.

22:00

The recent meetings in Saudi Arabia were a diplomatic win for Putin, but not necessarily a strategic one. The markets reflect that. After the talks, the Moscow Stock Exchange crashed instead of rising.

36:36

Money never lies. If the Russian markets dropped, it means those meetings did not go as well for Russia as Putin would like people to believe.

40:33

J.D. Vance is another case. He went from being a fierce Trump critic to one of his biggest loyalists in exchange for power. That shows how easily Trump can be manipulated.

42:55

Trump is a deeply vengeful, small-minded man. His grudge against Biden extends to anyone associated with Biden—including Zelensky.

46:05

Instead of leveraging negotiations for American interests, Trump gave everything to Putin for free.

49:40

Now, we see that Trump’s own approval ratings are dropping, protests are growing, and America is not Russia—power is not absolute there.

51:20

In the end, people will decide. No matter how much Trump tries to act like a king, the public and the system will push back.

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