Trump criticizes assistant for advising him not to call Putin
In a phone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin in March this year, US President Donald Trump called aides who opposed the exchange "stupid" and urged not to listen to them, the New York Times reported.
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| US President Donald Trump. Photo: AP |
In March, President Trump called Mr. Putin to congratulate him on his election victory. The Kremlin said the phone conversation took place at the initiative of the U.S. side.
After their conversation, the Washington Post, citing officials, reported that Trump ignored warnings from national security advisers urging him not to congratulate Putin on his re-election.
The New York Times quoted sources saying that Trump called his advisers "stupid".
"Those are idiots, you don't have to listen to them," Trump told the Russian president.
The Russian and US presidents are scheduled to meet on July 16 in Finland. The Kremlin said earlier that Putin and Trump would discuss prospects for bilateral relations and current issues on the international agenda.
