Trump cops severe criticism after defending Putin in Helsinki

Trump made the observation during his debut bi-lateral dialogue with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Finland's capital Helsinki on Monday

When asked if he believes his own country's intelligence agency or Putin, pertaining to the election hacking claims, Trump said: "President Putin says it's not Russia. I don't see any reason why it would be."

He also blamed his predecessors for the US' troubled diplomacy with Moscow.

Ironically, the US administration under Trump, deported at least 60 Russian diplomats earlier this year, following the nerve agent attack on former Russian double spy Sergei Skripal and his daughter Yulia, after the UK, where the incident took place, determined that a Novichok agent was used in the attempted murder and squarely blamed Russia for carrying out the attack. 

Even through Moscow protested the move, Russia witnessed a surge in diplomat deportation as over 20 countries backed the US. Interestingly, the Trump administration also deported the highest number of Russian diplomats, among all other countries who took a similar approach.

The two leaders held a close door meeting which ran for over two hours.

Trump also tweeted that even though he believes his country's intelligence department, he does not want to dwell in the past.

"As I said today and many times before, “I have GREAT confidence in MY intelligence people.” However, I also recognize that in order to build a brighter future, we cannot exclusively focus on the past," he said.

The US President has urged his Russian counterpart to join hands and work towards a unified goal.

"...as the world’s two largest nuclear powers, we must get along," he said.

Presently, the US and Russia display polar reactions to certain issues. While US has suspended its diplomatic ties with Syria, following the onset of civil war in 2012, Moscow is one of the beleaguered nation's largest allies.

Russia and the USA also don't get along well pertaining to oil imports.

Earlier this month, in a veiled threat to Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries, Trump had asked the body to cut down oil prices after it escalated in the USA.   

According to the National Australian Bank, the price hike in America was a direct result of the OPEC-Russia deal to cut oil output.

Following Trump's inability to stand up to Putin during their meeting, former Federal Bureau of Investigation director James Comey tweeted: "This was the day an American president stood on foreign soil next to a murderous lying thug and refused to back his own country. Patriots need to stand up and reject the behavior of this president."

In a follow-up tweet, he accused the American President of selling the nation on an international stage.

"Having sold out our nation on an international stage, Mr. Trump will now explain it all to Sean Hannity and Tucker Carlson? I’m guessing RT and Sputnick were unavailable. He owes it to our nation to sit down with a serious journalist," Comey said.

Dismissing Trump's claim that Russia had nothing to do with US elections, Speaker Paul Ryan said: "There is no moral equivalence between the United States and Russia, which remains hostile to our most basic values and ideals."

Senator John McCain, member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, termed the press conference as a "disgraceful performance" while he accused Trump of being "unwilling" to stand up to Putin.

"Today’s press conference in Helsinki was one of the most disgraceful performances by an American president in memory. The damage inflicted by President Trump’s naiveté, egotism, false equivalence, and sympathy for autocrats is difficult to calculate. But it is clear that the summit in Helsinki was a tragic mistake.

“President Trump proved not only unable, but unwilling to stand up to Putin. He and Putin seemed to be speaking from the same script as the president made a conscious choice to defend a tyrant against the fair questions of a free press, and to grant Putin an uncontested platform to spew propaganda and lies to the world," he said in a strong-worded statement.

Trump was also attacked in a series of tweets sent out by New York Senator Chuck Schumer.

"In the entire history of our country, Americans have never seen a president of the United States support an American adversary the way @realDonaldTrump has supported President Putin.

"For the president of the United States to side with President Putin against American law enforcement, American defense officials, and American intelligence agencies is thoughtless, dangerous, and weak. The president is putting himself over our country.

"Starting with the president’s trip to NATO and ending with his shameful performance at today’s press conference, @realDonaldTrump has strengthened our adversaries while weakening our defenses and those of our allies.

"A single, ominous question now hangs over the White House: what could possibly cause @realDonaldTrump to put the interests of Russia over those of the United States

"Millions of Americans will continue to wonder if the only possible explanation for this dangerous behavior is the possibility that President Putin holds damaging information over President Trump," Schumer added.

However, despite the criticism, Trump tweeted to say that he would not risk peace in pursuit of politics and underlined the fact that a strong US-Russia bi-lateral ties is the way forward.

"I would rather take a political risk in pursuit of peace, than to risk peace in pursuit of politics. A productive dialogue is not only good for the United States and good for Russia, but it is good for the world," he said.