Joe Biden was stood on the south lawn at the White House when he told reporters that putting American troops on the ground was “not on the table” to deter a potential Russian invasion of Ukraine.

The date was December 8, 2021, just over two months before Vladimir Putin sent his forces over the border in their attempt to capture Kyiv.

It is at this moment that those close to Donald Trump believe Mr Biden lost control of the situation and left the door wide open for the Kremlin.

Fast-forward to two weeks before the invasion, Trump spoke with his former national security adviser Robert O’Brien on the telephone.

“And [Trump] said ‘Look, they would never be doing this under [me] because they didn’t know what I’d do’,” Mr O’Brien told The New York Times, recounting the conversation.