Putin dismisses Mueller probe as ‘total nonsense’ in first public remarks since investigation’s end

Russian President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday commented publicly about special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation into the 2016 U.S. elections for the first time since the probe ended without federal investigators finding evidence of collusion between President Trump’s campaign and Moscow.

“We said from the start that Mr. Mueller’s notorious investigation would find no evidence,” Mr. Putin said at an event in St. Petersburg, regional outlets reported. “Therefore, it was clear to us in advance that it would end up as ’the mountain gave birth to a mouse,’ as they say.

“President Trump knows better than us what a ’witch hunt’ is. We know that this is a black page in American history,” Mr. Putin said during the International Arctic Forum, The Moscow Times reported. “I don’t want [this page] to ever be repeated.”

Attorney General William Barr wrote in a letter to Congress last month that the principal conclusions reached as a result of Mr. Mueller’s probe into the 2016 race “did not establish that members of the Trump campaign conspired or coordinated with the Russian government in its election interference activities.”

Mr. Mueller’s probe did implicate Moscow, however. The special counsel’s office filed criminal charges against 26 Russian nationals and three Russian companies accused of meddling in the 2016 race in connection with crimes spanning from hacking Democratic targets and stealing subsequently leaked emails, to weaponizing social media platforms to sow distrust among the U.S. voting public.

Mr. Putin denied Russian involvement in the election Tuesday, dismissing the probe as “total nonsense aimed mainly at the domestic audience and used in the domestic political struggle in the U.S.,” state media reported.

“Look what is going on now. Those groups, which are attacking the legitimate president — what is this? They disagree with the choice of the American people and they reduce to zero the results. This is the crisis of a political system,” Mr. Putin said, according to the government-owned TASS outlet.

Congress last week authorized a subpoena seeking access to Mr. Mueller’s full report. Mr. Barr said during a House subcommittee hearing Tuesday that a redacted version will be released “within a week.”