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16.07.2018 | Trump blasts Mueller probe, Putin denies meddling as leaders tout summit as ‘success’
Source - Fox News

President Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin touted their highly anticipated summit Monday as a success, though allegations of Russian meddling in the 2016 U.S. election quickly took center stage at a joint press conference.

Putin again emphatically denied meddling in the 2016 election, but also offered to cooperate in the special counsel probe—with a catch.

Trump, meanwhile, made clear that he “spent a great deal of time talking” about the issue of election meddling during their one-on-one meeting. But he went on to repeatedly slam Special Counsel Robert Mueller's probe as a “disaster for our country,” and assert there was “no collusion.” He suggested the claims were being used by Democrats who “should have been able to win” as an excuse.

“To say it one time again, and I say it all the time, there was no collusion. I didn’t know the president. There was no one to collude with, and there was no collusion with the campaign,” Trump said during the joint press conference. “We ran a brilliant campaign and that’s why I’m president.”

The two leaders said they discussed a host of other issues during their meeting Monday in Helsinki, and were working toward strengthening U.S.-Russian relations, which he said “has never been worse than it is now,” despite the push from Democrats, and some Republicans, back home in the U.S. to cancel the summit.

But he said that has changed.

“I would rather take a political risk in pursuit of peace than to risk peace in pursuit of politics,” Trump said, noting that he would “not make decisions on foreign policy in a futile effort to appease partisan critics, the media or Democrats who want to resist and obstruct.”

Trump added: “Nothing would be easier politically than to refuse to meet, refuse to engage, but that would not accomplish anything.”

The summit came just days after the Justice Department announced the indictments of a dozen Russian intelligence operatives for allegedly hacking Democratic targets in the 2016 U.S. presidential election. Putin has previously told Trump that Russia did not meddle in the 2016 presidential election.

When asked whether Putin would extradite the 12 Russians allegedly involved, Putin, instead, detailed a plan, which Trump called an “incredible offer.”

Putin offered to question the 12 indicted for meddling in the election, and added that Mueller and his team of investigators can be present for questioning, if U.S. officials would “reciprocate.” He suggested this would mean Russian agents could be present for questioning Americans "of interest" to them.

The joint press conference was held minutes after the historic summit between the two leaders Monday. The two met one-on-one for more than two hours, and later in an expanded meeting with key advisers.

Asked for his initial thoughts on the talks, Trump called the meeting a “really good start for everybody.”

Trump, as the private meeting began earlier Monday, said the two would have “a lot of good things to talk about,” from trade to missile defense to China. A host of other issues, from Russia election meddling to the annexation to Crimea to Syria, were also expected to come up.

“I think we will end up having an extraordinary relationship,” Trump said, sitting next to Putin earlier at the presidential palace in Helsinki. “Getting along with Russia is a good thing, not a bad thing.”

Trump sat down with Putin after spending the last week sparring with traditional U.S. allies—first with NATO nations over their levels of defense spending, and later with British Prime Minister Theresa May over her ‘Brexit’ strategy, though he seemed to patch things up before leaving London.

The tensions early on in his European tour created a contrast with efforts to improve ties with Moscow, leading to bipartisan concerns about the summit.

The also president claimed ahead of his summit with Putin that the Russian president would not have invaded Crimea had he been in office, calling the globally condemned annexation an “Obama disaster.”

Putin has signaled he would like Trump to soften sanctions that Washington imposed over the annexation of Crimea and support for separatists in eastern Ukraine, involvement in the Syrian civil war and allegations of Russian meddling.

Trump signed an August 2017 law imposing additional sanctions on Russia. The law bars Trump from easing many sanctions without Congress’ approval, but he can offer some relief without a nod from Congress.

Almost 700 Russian people and companies are under U.S. sanctions. Individuals face limits on their travel and freezes on at least some of their assets, while some top Russian state banks and companies, including oil and gas giants, are effectively barred from getting financing through U.S. banks and markets.


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