Russia’s Vladimir Putin laments ‘spymania’ gripping Washington

Putin said that contacts between Russian officials and members of US President Donald Trump's team during his election campaign had been routine, but had been twisted by Trump's opponents.

By: Reuters
Moscow | December 14, 2017 04:52 PM IST

1 min read

Vladimir Putin spoke ahead of a trip to Vietnam, where he will take part in an APEC summit and is expected to meet US President Donald Trump. (Source: AP)

Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Thursday that “spymania” had been artificially whipped up between Russia and the United States, and that eventually relations between the two countries would get back to normal. He said that contacts between Russian officials and members of US President Donald Trump’s team during his election campaign had been routine, but had been twisted by Trump’s opponents.

Asked by a reporter what he thought about Trump’s record in office, Putin said it was not for him to judge, but that he saw significant achievements from the Trump administration.