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Donald Trump gave evidence for just three minutes on Thursday in a defamation trial to determine how much he may owe a writer for calling her a liar after she accused him in 2019 of rape.

E Jean Carroll, 80, is seeking more than $10m (£7.87m) in damages over his denials when he was US president that he attacked her in a Manhattan shop in the mid-1990s.

She claimed Trump ruined her reputation when she accused him in a memoir of sexually abusing her in 1996 in the dressing room of Bergdorf Goodman, a luxury department store.

E. Jean Carroll walks outside Manhattan Federal Court, for the second civil trial after she accused former U.S. President Donald Trump of raping her decades ago, in New York City, U.S., January 25, 2024. REUTERS/Brendan Mcdermid
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E Jean Carroll arrives at Manhattan Federal Court. Pic: Reuters

The limits on Trump’s testimony in the civil case were placed on him by US District Judge Lewis Kaplan.

The judge told jurors they must accept the findings of another New York jury that awarded Ms Carroll $5m (£3.93m) after concluding he sexually abused her at the store and defamed her in a similar denial in October 2022.

The current trial at Manhattan federal court focuses only on statements Trump made in June 2019 while he was US leader. Those claims had been delayed for four years by appeals.

During his brief stint testifying, Trump answered questions from his lawyer Alina Habba.

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The former president said that Ms Carroll “said something I considered a false accusation”.

A lawyer for Ms Carroll objected and Judge Kaplan told the jury to disregard the remark.

Trump later said: “I just wanted to defend myself, my family and frankly, the presidency.”

That also drew an objection and another instruction from the judge for the jury to disregard it.

As Trump left the New York courtroom, he shook his head and repeatedly said: “This is not America. This is not America. This is not America.”

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Can Donald Trump win in 2024?

Trump, 77, has denied the accusations for the last five years and continues to attack the former Elle columnist on the presidential election campaign trail.

Ms Carroll was present as Trump was sworn in as a witness in court.

The former president, who had big victories in the New Hampshire primary on Tuesday and the Iowa caucuses last week, appeared relatively subdued in court before his testimony compared to previous appearances.

Read more:
What other legal cases is Trump facing?
Can Donald Trump run again in 2024?
Three years on from Capitol riots

Trump is also facing four criminal cases as the presidential primary season heats up.

He has been juggling court and campaign appearances, using both to argue that he is being persecuted by Democrats.

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Putin wasn’t at the White House, but his influence was – the moments which reveal his hold over Trump

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Putin wasn't at the White House, but his influence was - the moments which reveal his hold over Trump

Vladimir Putin wasn’t at the White House but his influence clearly was. At times, it dominated the room.

There were three key moments that revealed the Russian president‘s current hold over Donald Trump.

The first was in the Oval Office. Sitting alongside Volodymyr Zelenskyy, the US president told reporters: “I don’t think you need a ceasefire.”

Ukraine talks latest: Zelenskyy ‘ready to meet’ Putin after Trump summit

Vladimir Putin shaking hands with Donald Trump when they met last week. Pic: Reuters
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Vladimir Putin shaking hands with Donald Trump when they met last week. Pic: Reuters

It was a stunning illustration of Mr Trump’s about-face in his approach to peace. For the past six months, a ceasefire has been his priority, but after meeting Mr Putin in Alaska, suddenly it’s not.

Confirmation that he now views the war through Moscow’s eyes.

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Trump applauds Putin and shares ride in ‘The Beast’ last week

The second was the format itself, with Mr Trump reverting to his favoured ask-what-you-like open-ended Q&A.

In Alaska, Mr Putin wasn’t made to take any questions – most likely, because he didn’t want to. But here, Mr Zelenskyy didn’t have a choice. He was subjected to a barrage of them to see if he’d learnt his lesson from last time.

It was a further demonstration of the special status Mr Trump seems to afford to Mr Putin.

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The third was their phone call. Initially, President Trump said he’d speak to the Kremlin leader after his meeting with European leaders. But it turned out to be during it.

A face-to-face meeting with seven leaders was interrupted for a phone call with one – as if Mr Trump had to check first with Mr Putin, before continuing his discussions.

We still don’t know the full details of the peace proposal that’s being drawn up, but all this strongly suggests that it’s one sketched out by Russia. The White House is providing the paper, but the Kremlin is holding the pen.

Read more:
Four key takeaways from the White House Ukraine summit
Trump has taken peace talks a distance not seen since the war began

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Trump, Zelenskyy and the suit: What happened?

For Moscow, the aim now is to keep Mr Trump on their path to peace, which is settlement first, ceasefire later.

It believes that’s the best way of securing its goals, because it has more leverage so long as the fighting continues.

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But Mr Putin will be wary that Mr Trump is pliable and can easily change his mind, depending on the last person he spoke to.

So to ensure that his sympathies aren’t swayed, and its red lines remain intact, Russia will be straining to keep its voice heard.

On Monday, for example, the Russian foreign ministry was quick to condemn recent comments from the UK government that it would be ready to send troops to help enforce any ceasefire.

It described the idea as “provocative” and “predatory”.

Moscow is trying to drown out European concerns by portraying itself as the party that wants peace the most, and Kyiv (and Europe) as the obstacle.

But while Mr Zelenskyy has agreed to a trilateral meeting, the Kremlin has not. After the phone call between Mr Putin and Mr Trump, it said the leaders discussed “raising the level of representatives” in the talks between Russia and Ukraine. No confirmation to what level.

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Trump brokers Putin and Zelenskyy meeting

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Trump brokers Putin and Zelenskyy meeting

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Donald Trump wants to set up a face-to-face meeting between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. How would that work? And would it accelerate peace in Ukraine?

Zelenskyy and other European leaders made their way to Washington DC. What was their goal? To make sure Trump is still on their side – and to make sure he’s not got too close to Putin and his plans to annex parts of Ukraine after the pair met in Alaska.

How much of a turning point was the White House summit in Russia’s invasion of Ukraine?

If you’ve got a question you’d like the Trump100 team to answer, you can email it to trump100@sky.uk.

You can also watch all episodes – including the interview with Tim – on our YouTube channel.

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We are further away from peace now than we were two weeks ago

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We are further away from peace now than we were two weeks ago

It’s always wise to let the dust settle before reaching conclusions with this presidency.

But on the face of it we are further away from peace now than we were two weeks ago.

The consensus that was held back then was that Vladimir Putin would only relent under maximum pressure. He does not want slivers of territory. He wants the whole of Ukraine extinguished and absorbed into his greater Russia.

Ukraine talks latest: Trump sets up Zelenskyy-Putin meeting

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What’s next for Ukraine?

To stop him, allies agreed an immediate ceasefire was necessary, along with much more painful pressure, namely sanctions hitting his oil industry. Europeans and Republicans in Congress agree on that.

Then Alaska and Donald Trump’s U-turn. No ceasefire and no more severe sanctions. So less pressure.

Yesterday’s reality TV diplomatic circus in Washington has not shifted him on that stance, so he stays it seems now aligned with Mr Putin on those crucial points.

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Starmer: This needs to be a lasting deal

Making matters worse for Ukraine, allies seem to be accepting it will have to give up land taken by force.

They sweeten the pill by saying of course only Ukraine can decide whether or not to cede territory, but there is now enormous pressure on Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to do so.

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In return there is nebulous and vague talk of security guarantees. European leaders are seizing on the fact Mr Trump did not rule out American troops being involved and hinted at US support for post-war security arrangements.

But that is little consolation for Ukrainians. They point out this president changes his mind as often as his socks and goes back on commitments, even those enshrined in international treaties.

The best that can be said for the White House meeting is it sets up more such meetings.

Read more:
Five key takeaways from the White House Ukraine summit
Trump has taken peace talks a distance not seen since the war began

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Much of yesterday’s events were focused on stroking President Trump’s ego. Many here in Kyiv would prefer he was reminded of a few hard facts about this war. Mr Putin cannot be trusted. Mr Putin wants the end of Ukraine. Mr Putin will only relent under maximum pressure.

Protracted international diplomacy may suit Mr Trump’s craving for attention, but they fear it will only take us further away from peace.

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