Donald Trump reportedly urged Vladimir Putin to ignore the ‘stupid people’ in his administration who had advised him against not to congratulate the Russian leader on his election victory.
President Trump was speaking with Putin on the phone just days after the Russian leader won his election in March, in what what was widely believed to be a rigged race with a landslide 77 per cent of the vote.
Amid the controversy over the election, Trump was warned by his advisers not to congratulate Putin on his success. They even reported included a line in his briefing materials, stating in all-capital letters ‘DO NOT CONGRATULATE.’
Donald Trump reportedly urged Vladimir Putin to ignore the ‘stupid people’ in his administration who had advised him against not to congratulate the Russian leader on his election victory (Trump with Putin at the APEC Summit in Danang, Vietnam November 11, 2017)
Trump chose to ignore the warnings, a source told The New York Times.
He told Putin that officials had even tried to prevent the phone call entirely.
‘Those are stupid people; you shouldn’t listen to them,’ Trump said of his advisers.
The source said that Trump then congratulated Putin on his reelection, and lamented that Russia and the US didn’t get along better.
Trump has faced criticism over his reluctance to speak out against Putin and Russia, as well as his administration’s alleged ties to Russia.
President Trump was speaking with Putin on the phone just days after the Russian leader won his election in March, in what what was widely believed to be a rigged race with a landslide 77 per cent of the vote
He has said previously it’s not a ‘bad’ thing to get along with Putin, and even suggested Russia should be readmitted to the G7 summit.
Russia had been kicked out over its violent annexation of Crimea from the Ukraine in 2014.
Putin’s latest election is widely believed to have been fraudulent, and critics fear it may be another step towards Putin being a ruler for life in Russia.
His only challenger, Alexei Navalny, was banned from participating because of a fraud conviction.
Trump is in Europe on Tuesday for NATO talks, which he will cap off with a stop in Helsinki, Finland, for a summit with Putin.