09-14-2023, 04:10 AM
Quote:The Russian president, who has a history of persecuting his political opponents, claimed Tuesday that the criminal cases against Trump were part of “the persecution of a political rival for political reasons.” Former president Donald Trump pointed to sympathetic comments from Russian President Vladimir Putin early Wednesday to try to bolster his case that he is being treated unfairly by prosecutors in the United States.Trump embraces Putin’s sympathetic comments to claim political persecution
The comments reflected the largely warm relationship between the two leaders during Trump’s presidency, which included a 2018 summit at which Trump refused to support the collective conclusion of U.S. intelligence agencies that Russia had interfered in the 2016 U.S. presidential election.
Trump has continued to maintain that he and Putin are on good terms, despite the isolation of Putin by the West for his invasion of Ukraine — which Trump once described as “genius” and “savvy.”