‘Putin is very important’: Trump on possible meeting with Russian leader at APEC summit
US President Donald Trump says he might meet with Russian president Vladimir Putin during his 12-day Asia tour, calling him “very important.” The meeting would come amid the ongoing Congressional probes into alleged Russian meddling in US elections.
Asked by Fox News host Laura Ingraham on The Ingraham Angle whether the US president will speak with Putin on the trip, Trump enthusiastically replied: “We may have a meeting with Putin.”
“And, again – Putin is very important because they can help us with North Korea. They can help us with Syria. We have to talk about Ukraine,” Trump added.
Trump is set to travel to Vietnam, China, Japan, the Philippines and South Korea as part of his 11-day voyage to Asia, the longest trip to Asia by an American president in over two decades. The US leader is set to attend the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in Danang, Vietnam next week. He will also make a state visit to Hanoi, ending his trip with the Association of South East Asia Nations summit in Manila, the Philippines.
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov told reporters on Friday he could not “exclude the possibility of holding such a meeting, and it is actually being coordinated now.” As soon as all details are clarified, a corresponding announcement will be made, he added.
The Russian president’s spokesman said the importance and significance of any potential contact between the presidents of Russia and the United States “for all international affairs can hardly be overestimated.”
Earlier Peskov told reporters that Putin’s bilateral meetings schedule at the APEC summit is being finalized.
Trump said in August that relations between the US and Russia are at an all-time, very dangerous low, tweeting that the Americans should blame Congress for this disappointing turn of events.
Source:rt.com
