White House blasts Trump just as he tries to temper Putin praise
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Mr Donald Trump has attributed the invasion to Mr Putin being emboldened by President Joe Biden being "weak".
PHOTO: NYTIMES
WASHINGTON (BLOOMBERG) - Mr Donald Trump is seeking to temper his characterisation of Mr Vladimir Putin as a "genius" shortly before the invasion of Ukraine while the Biden White House sharply criticised the former president over his comments this week about the Russian leader.
Mr Trump's remarks before the invasion that the Russian president was "a genius" and "very savvy" to say he was declaring portions of Ukraine independent and massing troops on the border as part of a peace-keeping operation were widely condemned.
He said in a statement on Wednesday (March 30) that he was referring to Mr Putin's strategy as a negotiating tactic.
"I called his build-up on the Ukraine border before the war started genius because I assumed he would be easily able to negotiate a great deal for Russia," Mr Trump said in the statement. "Unfortunately, and tragically, Putin went too far."
Mr Trump has attributed the invasion to Mr Putin being emboldened by President Joe Biden being "weak," and said the war wouldn't have started had he remained in office.
But White House Communications Director Kate Bedingfield castigated Mr Trump when asked about comments that he made in an interview broadcast Tuesday on Real America's Voice.
Mr Trump called on Mr Putin to release information he has on Mr Hunter Biden, the president's son. The comments were particularly jarring given that they came as Mr Putin continued his deadly assault on Ukraine.
"What kind of American, let alone an ex-president, thinks that this is the right time to enter into a scheme with Vladimir Putin and brag about his connections to Vladimir Putin?" Ms Bedingfield said during a press briefing. "There's only one, and it's Donald Trump."
