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If the Russian president could design a candidate to undermine American interests—and advance his own—he’d look a lot like Donald Trump. By Franklin Foer Yesterday, Donald Trump told the New York Times that he would not necessarily come to the aid of NATO states threatened by Russia and would make his decision to defend them from an attack after reviewing whether they “have fulfilled their obligations to us.” It was the latest statement from Trump that was likely greeted with delight in the Kremlin. Earlier this month, Franklin Foer wrote on the frightening ways in which Trump seems to be playing right into Vladimir Putin's plans for destabilizing the West. Vladimir Putin has a plan for destroying the West—and that plan looks a lot like Donald Trump. Over the past decade, Russia has boosted right-wing populists across Europe. It loaned money to Marine Le Pen in France, well-documented transfusions of cash to keep her presidential campaign alive. Such largesse also wended its way to the former Italian premier Silvio Berlusconi, who profited “personally and handsomely” from Russian energy deals, as an American ambassador to Rome once put it. (Berlusconi also shared a 240-year-old bottle of Crimean wine with Putin and apparently makes ample use of a bed gifted to him by the Russian president.) There’s a clear pattern: Putin runs stealth efforts on behalf of politicians who rail against the European Union and want to push away from NATO. He’s been a patron of Golden Dawn in Greece, Ataka in Bulgaria, and Jobbik in Hungary. Joe Biden warned about this effort last year in a speech at the Brookings Institution: “President Putin sees such political forces as useful tools to be manipulated, to create cracks in the European body politic which he can then exploit.” Ruptures that will likely multiply after Brexit—a campaign Russia’s many propaganda organs bombastically promoted. The destruction of Europe is a grandiose objective; so is the weakening of the United States. Until recently, Putin has only focused glancing attention on American elections. Then along came the presumptive Republican nominee. Donald Trump is like the Kremlin’s favored candidates, only more so. He celebrated the United Kingdom’s exit from the EU. He denounces NATO with feeling. He is also a great admirer of Vladimir Putin. Trump’s devotion to the Russian president has been portrayed as buffoonish enthusiasm for a fellow macho strongman. But Trump’s statements of praise amount to something closer to slavish devotion. In 2007, he praised Putin for “rebuilding Russia.” A year later he added, “He does his work well. Much better than our Bush.” When Putin ripped American exceptionalism in a New York Times op-ed in 2013, Trump called it “a masterpiece.” Despite ample evidence, Trump denies that Putin has assassinated his opponents: “In all fairness to Putin, you’re saying he killed people. I haven’t seen that.” In the event that such killings have transpired, they can be forgiven: “At least he’s a leader.” And not just any old head of state: “I will tell you that, in terms of leadership, he’s getting an A.” |
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When Rey* first got an HIV test, his mother went with him. He was 17 and her consent was required by law. “My mum and I are pretty close. She has no issues about me being gay and is really supportive. But I know a lot of my friends wouldn’t dare bring their mums with them to get an HIV test,” says Rey, from Palawan. His test came back positive and although it frightened him, Rey couldn’t say he was surprised. Sexual initiation came early but condom use did not. He was 14 when he had his first sexual encounter; 16 when he tried to buy condoms at the local pharmacy. Condoms were placed behind the counter. Rey had to endure the awkwardness of telling the cashier he wanted to buy condoms and the knowing looks he got. ... The Philippines, an archipelago of more than 100 million people in south-east Asia, is experiencing a surge in infections. Of the more than 40,000 people living with HIV, the majority were diagnosed in the past five years and many are young men (pdf). Activists blame the increase on outdated laws and the grip of the Catholic church, which has sought to restrict safe sex programmes, sex education and efforts to distribute condoms to at-risk groups. Homosexuality is legal, but the law prohibits people under 18 from getting an HIV test or taking free condoms from public health clinics without parental consent. Attempts by politicians to lower the age of testing without consent to 15 failed to gain sufficient support, leaving many young people without the means to protect themselves. |
