Trump and Putin sit down for Helsinki conference after Trump bashed past US Russia policy
- President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin sat down for a conference in Helsinki, Finland on Monday.
- The two have no clear agenda, but Trump is expected to press Russia on its hacking of the Democratic National Convention's servers after the special counsel Robert Mueller's probe indicted 12 Russians for their role.
- Putin kept Trump waiting a full hour before the summit. Putin's plane landed in Helsinki at 1 p.m. local time, just 10 minutes before the scheduled start, according to pool reports.
President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin sat down for a conference in Helsinki, Finland on Monday to talk about a broad range of topics and bilateral ties after Trump denounced former US-Russia policy.
"Our relationship with Russia has NEVER been worse thanks to many years of U.S. foolishness and stupidity and now, the Rigged Witch Hunt!" Trump tweeted hours before the meeting.
Russia's ministry of foreign affairs liked the tweet in a sign of its approval for Trump's messaging.
"Presidents Trump and Putin respect each other and they get along well," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said. "There is no clear agenda. It will be determined by the heads of state themselves as they go along."
The lack of agenda and US insistence on giving Putin and Trump time alone has worried many pundits in the US who harbor suspicions about Trump's ties to Russia.
Trump is expected to press Russia on its hacking of the Democratic National Convention's servers after the special counsel Robert Mueller's probe indicted 12 Russian military intelligence officers for their role.
Additionally, Syria, Ukraine, and arms control are likely topics of conversation.
Putin kept Trump waiting a full hour before the summit. Putin's plane landed in Helsinki at 1 p.m. local time, just 10 minutes before the scheduled start, according to pool reports.
The two are scheduled to hold a joint press conference later in the day on Monday.