Putin Wants His Own Munich

A summit with Trump and Xi would be a gift to an expansionist dictator, 88 years after the betrayal of Czechoslovakia. Illustration by Noah Hickey/The Dispatch (Photos via Getty Images). Turn any article into a podcast. Upgrade now to start listening. Members can share articles with friends & family to bypass the paywall. History, Marx wrote, paraphrasing Hegel, repeats itself: What was first tragedy becomes farce the second time around. Yet as historical analogies go, Vladimir Putin’s invitation to Xi Jinping and Donald Trump to meet next month to talk about ending the war in Ukraine rests firmly in the tragic mode. The putative summit’s historical twin is the September 30, 1938, Munich Agreement. Want to see more of The Dispatch in Google search? Add Us as a Preferred Source Leon Aron is the author of several books including, most recently, Riding the Tiger: Vladimir Putin’s Russia and the Uses of War. More We Think You’d Like