Trump smirks, jokes with Putin: ‘Don’t meddle in the election’

President Trump smirked and jokingly told President Vladimir Putin, “Don’t meddle in the election,” in their first meeting since the release of special counsel Robert Mueller’s report on 2016 interference.

Mr. Trump made the lighthearted comment after reporters at the G20 summit in Japan asked if he’d warn Mr. Putin to butt out of future campaigns.

“Yes of course I will,” Mr. Trump said, before turning to Mr. Putin with a grin: “Don’t meddle in the election, president. Don’t meddle in the election.”

Mr. Trump’s offhand comments swiftly rankled U.S. critics who say the president isn’t doing enough to call out Mr. Putin and is too cozy with the Russian strongman.

“President Trump’s attempt to jokingly make light of this threat sends a signal to the world that he will not hold Putin accountable,” said Sen. Jack Reed, Rhode Island Democrat. “This is not a joke. This is about deterring the Kremlin from continuing to attack our democracy.”

Seated in Osaka, Mr. Trump said it was a “great honor” to sit with Mr. Putin.

“We have a very, very good relationship and we look forward to spending some very good time together,” he said. “A lot of very positive things are going to come out of the relationship.”

A White House readout of their meeting said the pair discussed arms control and the situations in Iran, Syria, Venezuela, and Ukraine. It also stressed the need for better relations between the countries, though did not mention election interference, specifically.

The president claims he’s been tougher on Russia than past presidents, though he tends to shy away from rhetoric that could undermine the legitimacy of his 2016 victory. He also says his political rivals are overreaching and trying to dig up dirt on him.

Democrats and others say Mr. Trump must take a harder line, citing Mr. Mueller’s conclusion that Russia engaged in a “sweeping and systematic” effort to interfere and preferred Mr. Trump over Hillary Clinton.

Mr. Mueller did not find a criminal conspiracy between the Trump campaign and Russia, however, prompting the president to claim vindication.

Yet critics at home continue to wonder why Mr. Trump hasn’t preserved meeting notes or been more transparent about what the leaders discuss whenever they meet. And they were horrified when Mr. Trump appeared to accept Mr. Putin’s denial of interference — over assertions from U.S. intelligence — at a 2018 summit in Finland.

In an interview with the Financial Times, Mr. Putin gave one of his most extensive assessments of Mr. Trump’s victory in 2016 over Hillary Clinton.

“Russia has been accused, and, strange as it may seem, it is still being accused … of alleged interference in the U.S. election,” Mr. Putin said. “What happened in reality? Mr. Trump looked into his opponents’ attitude to him and saw changes in American society, and he took advantage of this.”

The Russian leader said Mr. Trump “is not a career politician.”

“I do not accept many of his methods when it comes to addressing problems,” Mr. Putin said. “But do you know what I think? I think that he is a talented person. He knows very well what his voters expect from him.”
At the G20

Mr. Putin highlighted the fact that Osaka marked their first formal get-together since Helsinki, even if their staffs have been talking.

Though the readout of their meeting touched on Ukraine, the Russians’ seizure of three Ukrainian ships in late 2018 did not seem to be a top priority.

“We haven’t discussed it, we haven’t discussed it. ” Mr. Trump said.

The November episode prompted Mr. Trump to scrap his last planned meeting with Mr. Putin at the G20 summit in Argentina.

Mr. Trump and Mr. Putin struck a friendlier posture in Osaka.

During a “family photo,” the two men walked together and chatted before parting, with Mr. Trump patting Mr. Putin gently on the back.

— Staff writer Dave Boyer contributed to this article.