Daily Mirror (Northern Ireland)
Shock offer after US trip called off
VLADIMIR Putin has invited Donald Trump to Moscow...days after the President postponed their planned White House meeting.
At their meeting in Finland two weeks ago, the US leader had asked his Russian counterpart to visit this autumn.
But on Wednesday the offer was rescinded until after the probe into alleged Moscow meddling in the 2016 US election.
However yesterday, at an economic summit in South Africa, Putin said he would happily entertain Trump in Russia. He told reporters: “We are ready to invite Mr Trump to Moscow.
“He has, by the way, such an invitation. I told him about it.”
The White House did not comment on the offer to Mr Trump – dubbed “Putin’s Poodle” by critics after kow-towing to the Russian leader in Helsinki.
The development came as Trump’s personal lawyer Michael Cohen claimed the billionaire knew in advance about the June 2016 meeting in which Russians were expected to offer his campaign “dirt” on opponent Hillary Clinton.
The revelation contradicted repeated denials by Trump, his eldest son Donald Jr and other officials who have always said the President knew nothing.
They claim he only discovered details of the Trump Tower meeting last July. The move could leave to the President open to conspiracy charges. Yesterday he accused Cohen of lying, writing: “I did NOT know of the meeting with my son, Don Jr. Sounds to me like someone is trying to make up stories in order to get himself out of an unrelated jam (Taxi cabs maybe?). Trump was referring to Cohen’s tax-troubled taxi firm.
The lawyer is prepared to tell special counsel Robert Mueller he was present, along with several others, when Trump Jr told his father of the Russians’ offer. By his account, Trump agreed the meeting, which took place four months before his election.