Last updated on July 9th, 2019 at 08:55 am
Since the rise of Donald Trump in the 2016 US Republican Nomination race, the Russian President Vladimir Putin has extended his arms towards America for Trump leadership. While the two countries haven’t been the favorite of each other, the President-elect Donald Trump is looking to establish himself as a bridge between them. Hence, Donald Trump’s relation with Vladimir Putin may seem friendlier but is hugely controversial.
Relation between Trump and Putin before the election
The start of the relationship between these two most controversial people in the world dates back to 30th September 2015 when Trump acclaimed Putin over President Obama. He said, “I will tell you that, in terms of leadership, [Putin’s] getting an A and our president is not doing so well.” This statement captured Russian attention.
In the same way, President Putin also praised Trump saying, “He’s a really brilliant and talented person, without any doubt. It’s not our job to judge his abilities, that’s a job for American voters, but he’s the absolute leader in the presidential race.” Throughout the election campaign, Trump used that statement as an endorsement from Russia. However, some reporters argue that Putin was wrongly interpreted.
The very next day, Trump defended Putin’s expansionist foreign policies and various murder accusation against him. Likewise, in April, he announced the idea of extending hands towards the Russian government for global cooperation. Hence, the rampant criticisms in July tagged Trump as a pro-Putin. However, he remained unconcerned.
As the Trump movement grew, the issue of developing Russian ties also heated up. Trump made several comments against Clinton for being too harsh on Russia. And, he even doubted Democrat’s claim that Russia hacked into DNC. Most importantly, Trump even managed to say that he would probably meet Putin before starting the US administration.
Prior to the election, Russian President Putin and Republican frontrunner Trump became the center of attraction. Both of these controversial personalities have praised and defended each other.
Post-election relation of Trump with Putin
As Donald Trump secured a landslide victory against Hillary Clinton on 8th November, there arose speculations of possible Russian representatives in Trump team. Despite this, Trump was tacitly reported to have spoken to Putin after the win. Subsequently, A radio aired the voice of a Russian governor which implied the Russian victory in the United States election.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HOD9oAtZeEw
On December 4, 2016, Vladimir Putin again praised Trump – “Because he achieved success in business, it suggests that he is a clever man.” Recently, the comment was followed by a CIA report that suggests Russian intelligence’s interference in the US election – mainly in producing Clinton’s deleted emails via WikiLeaks. Amid this speculation, Trump appointed Rex Tillerson as the new Secretary of State. Rex is supposedly a Russian ally.
Even though we haven’t heard of any major event taking place between Putin and Trump, it’s reasonable to say that American fresh friendship with Russia is not far off. The credit goes to both Putin and Trump who apparently seem to have a likening for each other.
