President Trump pledged Thursday that he will “of course” raise the issue of Russia’s meddling in the 2016 election at his summit next week with the country’s leader, Vladimir Putin, but he insisted that there was little he could do if — as expected — Putin denies that Russia interfered.
“Look, he may. What am I going to do? He may deny it,” Trump said at a news conference here on the second day of a NATO summit. “All I can do is say, ‘Did you?’ And, ‘Don’t do it again.’ But he may deny it. You’ll be the first to know.”
During the hastily assembled news conference, Trump also continued to strike a friendly tone toward the Russian leader, calling him a “competitor” rather than A U.S. enemy — while declining to label him directly as a security threat to the United States or other European nations. Throughout his presidency, Trump has steadfastly declined to admonish Putin, even as U.S. intelligence officials concluded that Moscow meddled in the 2016 election in an effort to sow discord and help Trump win.
“Somebody was saying, is he an enemy? He’s not my enemy. Is he your friend? No, I don’t know him very much,” Trump told reporters. “Hopefully, someday, he’ll be a friend. It could happen.”
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“I don’t mind him having a friendly personal relationship with Putin as long as it’s understood that Russia will pay a price,” Sen. Lindsey O. Graham (R-S.C.) said. “Without any hesitation, we have to reject Putin’s denial.”
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When asked whether he would recognize Crimea as part of Russia during his summit with Putin, Trump did not respond directly. Instead, he blamed Barack Obama, who was president in 2014 when Russia annexed the Crimea region from Ukraine, then intervened on behalf of pro-Russian separatists in eastern Ukraine.
“That was on Barack Obama’s watch. That was not on Trump’s watch,” Trump said. “Would I have allowed it to happen? No.”
Read More: Trump says he will raise election meddling with Putin at summit (The Washington Post)