President Trump and first lady Melania Trump have received an outpouring of well-wishes from world leaders after they announced overnight that both had tested positive for COVID-19.
Mr. Trump tweeted the diagnosis around midnight local time after learning that Hope Hicks, a senior presidential aide, contracted the novel coronavirus earlier in the week.
While speculation mounts about the impact the diagnosis will have on the Trump administration, the White House has said that the Trumps have entered isolation and the president is in the “recovery process.”
Russian President Vladimir Putin, who has kept a close bubble during the coronavirus pandemic in an effort to reduce the chance of infection, was among the first to send his well-wishes to the president.
“I am certain that your inherent vitality, good spirits and optimism will help you cope with this dangerous virus,” Mr. Putin said in a telegram to Mr. Trump, according to Russia’s Interfax news agency.
“My wife Sarah and I are sending our friends President Trump and his first wife, Melania Trump, our best wishes for a speedy and complete recovery,” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu tweeted Friday.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi tweeted, “Wishing my friend @POTUS @realDonaldTrump and @FLOTUS a quick recovery and good health.”
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, who tested positive for COVID-19 earlier this year and was hospitalized due to complications from the virus, said, “My best wishes to President Trump and the First Lady. Hope they both have a speedy recovery from coronavirus.”
Chinese President Xi Jinping has been quiet on the matter since Mr. Trump announced the test results. However, the editor-in-chief of China’s Global Times newspaper, which is known as a mouthpiece for the Chinese government, offered a more somber message to the president and said Mr. Trump has “paid the price for his gamble to play down the COVID-19.”
“The news shows the severity of the US’ pandemic situation,” Hu Xijin tweeted. “It will impose a negative impact on the image of Trump and the US, and may also negatively affect his reelection.”
A spokesperson for French President Emmanuel Macron also highlighted Mr. Trump’s prior resistance to acknowledge the severity of the virus and told French media, “This demonstrates that the virus spares no one, including those who have shown skepticism. I wish him a swift recovery.”
• Lauren Toms can be reached at lmeier@washingtontimes.com.
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