President Trump is inviting Russian President Vladimir Putin to Washington, DC this fall, even though mystery still surrounds what the two men discussed behind closed doors in Helsinki, Finland just four days ago.
Press Secretary Sarah Sanders announced the news on Twitter.
Director of National Intelligence Dan Coats found out about the plans for a second summit during a live interview on stage at the Aspen Security Forum.
Mr. Trump’s director of national intelligence, Dan Coats, acknowledged frustration at being kept in the dark about the [first] meeting, which included only the leaders and their respective interpreters. “If he had asked me how that ought to be conducted,” Mr. Coats said at a security conference in Aspen, Colo., “I would have suggested a different way. It is what it is.”
As the questions mounted, the White House rejected a proposal by Mr. Putin to question American citizens, including a former ambassador to Moscow, Michael A. McFaul, in return for giving the United States access to 12 Russian military intelligence officers indicted for their role in trying to sabotage the 2016 election.
That reversed its statement a day earlier that Mr. Trump was still open to the idea.
The Senate voted 98-0 Thursday on a resolution to protect Ambassador McFaul and others.
CNN:
The resolution expressed the sense of the Senate that no current or former diplomat, civil servant, law enforcement official, member of the armed forces or political appointee should be made available to Putin's government for an interrogation. The proposal was produced by Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, a New York Democrat.
(...)
Earlier Thursday, Republican senators criticized the White House for temporarily entertaining a proposal raised by Putin to interrogate Americans in exchange for assistance in the ongoing US investigation into election interference. The White House later said it did not support the proposal.
"It is a proposal that was made in sincerity by President Putin, but President Trump disagrees with it," press secretary Sarah Sanders said in a statement Thursday. "Hopefully President Putin will have the 12 identified Russians come to the United States to prove their innocence or guilt."
The Americans wanted for questioning by Moscow include Michael McFaul, the former US ambassador to Russia, and American-born financier Bill Browder, who successfully lobbied the US government to impose new sanctions on Moscow.
Trump to Invite Putin to Washington as Top Advisers Seek Details of Their Summit Talks (NYT)
Senate votes 98-0 to reject Putin proposal to send ex-US ambassador back to Russia (CNN)