Trump says he awaits Putin’s decision as Kremlin leader shrugs off ‘conspiracy’ remark
WASHINGTON: US President Donald Trump said on Wednesday (Sep 3) that he has no further message for Russian President Vladimir Putin and is waiting for Moscow’s decision on whether to move forward with peace talks on Ukraine.
"I have no message to President Putin," Trump told reporters at the White House. "He knows where I stand and he'll make a decision one way or another. Whatever his decision is, we'll either be happy about it or unhappy about it and if we're unhappy about it, you'll see things happen."
The comments came a day after Trump said he was "very disappointed" in Putin and suggested that the Kremlin chief was aligning with China’s Xi Jinping and North Korea’s Kim Jong Un against the United States.
PUTIN RESPONDS WITH HUMOUR
In Moscow, Putin dismissed Trump’s suggestion of a conspiracy, saying the US leader had a "sense of humour". He said that during his talks in China, all countries had expressed support for last month’s US-Russia summit in Alaska and voiced hopes it could advance efforts to end the war in Ukraine.
The exchange underscores the strain in relations following the Alaska meeting, which Trump had promoted as a potential breakthrough. Instead, Russia has intensified strikes on Kyiv, deepening scepticism in Washington and Europe about Putin’s intentions.
