Trump says it would be a ‘smart thing’, if he had talked to Putin
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Donald Trump embraced Mr Vladimir Putin during his presidency, and has continued to do so since leaving office.
PHOTO: NYTIMES
CHICAGO – Former President Donald Trump on Oct 15 repeatedly dodged a question about whether he had spoken to Russian President Vladimir Putin after his presidency ended but added that it would have been a “smart thing” if he had.
During a frequently combative interview, Mr John Micklethwait, the editor-in-chief of Bloomberg, asked Trump directly about a new book by the journalist Bob Woodward that includes an unnamed aide saying the former president and Mr Putin had spoken as many as seven times since Trump left office in 2021.
The account – which has not been corroborated by other journalists – has revived questions about the two men’s long-scrutinised relationship, particularly in the light of Trump’s criticism of continued US military aid to Ukraine.
“Well, I don’t comment on that,” Trump told Mr Micklethwait during an interview conducted at a meeting of the Economic Club of Chicago. “But I will tell you that, if I did it, it’s a smart thing. If I’m friendly with people, if I have a relationship with people, that’s a good thing, not a bad thing.”
After trying unsuccessfully to interrupt Trump – who had launched into a winding account of his views on a Russian pipeline, other countries’ military spending and trade deals – Mr Micklethwait attempted to clarify Trump’s remarks. “You seemed to imply that you had talked to him without actually confirming,” he said.
Trump once again did not issue an outright denial.
The relationship between Trump and Mr Putin has drawn attention since the 2016 presidential campaign, when US intelligence agencies released a statement warning of Russian election interference.
Trump embraced Mr Putin during his presidency, and has continued to do so since leaving office. Trump called Russia’s invasion of Ukraine “pretty smart” in 2022, and he has been sceptical about continuing military and financial aid to Ukraine.
Though Trump often insists his relationship with Mr Putin will allow him to end the war in Ukraine swiftly, he has not addressed whether he believes Ukraine will have to give up territory to Russia to do so. NYTIMES
