President Trump says Syrian President Bashar Assad is “truly an evil person” and that Russian President Vladimir Putin’s alliance with him is “bad for mankind.”
“Putin is backing a person that’s truly an evil person,” Mr. Trump said of Russia’s alliance with Mr. Assad.
“And I think it’s very bad for Russia. I think it’s very bad for mankind,” Mr. Trump said in an interview that aired Wednesday on Fox Business Network. “It’s very bad for this world.”
“I think aligning yourself with Assad is a big mistake because he’s a butcher, and I think it’s very bad for Russia,” he said.
The U.S. recently launched a missile strike in Syria in response to suspected use of chemical weapons by Mr. Assad.
“We’re not going into Syria, but when I see people using horrible, horrible chemical weapons — which they agreed not to use under the Obama administration, but they violated it,” Mr. Trump said.
“What I did should have been done by the Obama administration a long time before I did it,” he said. “I think Syria would be a lot better off right now than it has been.”
• David Sherfinski can be reached at dsherfinski@washingtontimes.com.
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