Trump, Putin held secret meeting at G20 Summit
WASHINGTON: US President Donald Trump had a previously undisclosed meeting with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin at the G 20 Summit in Hamburg, the White House has acknowledged.
This was their second meeting at the summit, but unlike the first, it was not disclosed by the White House, which confirmed it on Tusesday only after it was made public by Ian Bremmer of the Eurasia Group.
The revelation came days after Trump’s eldest son Donald Jr released emails showing he held a meeting during the campaign with Kremlin-linked figures, hoping to get dirt on Hillary Clinton.
The White House said the two leaders spoke “briefly” but did not offer details of their conversation .“It is not merely perfectly normal, it is part of a president’s duties, to interact with world leaders. Throughout the G 20 and in all his other foreign engagements, President Trump has demonstrated American leadership by representing our interests and values on the world stage,” it added.
Trump followed up a series of tweets. “Fake News story of secret dinner with Putin is ‘sick’. All G 20 leaders, and spouses, were invited by the Chancellor of Germany. Press knew!”
SC PARTLY REJECTS TRUMP ON TRAVEL BAN
The US Supreme Court has declined to block a judge’s ruling that prevented Trump’s travel ban from being applied to grandparents of US citizens.
But ina partial win for Trump, the court put on hold part of the judge’s ruling that would have allowed more people to enter the United States under a separate ban on refugees.