Russia and Putin · Before politics · № 2
Asked on Twitter whether Putin would come to Miss Universe in Moscow and 'become my new best friend'
“Do you think Putin will be going to The Miss Universe Pageant in November in Moscow - if so, will he become my new best friend?”
- Said
- , Twitter (@realDonaldTrump)
- Subject
- Miss Universe in Moscow
- Type
- Praise and deference
- Topic
- Foreign policy
- Era
- Before politics
What happened
Trump co-owned the Miss Universe pageant, which was staged at Crocus City Hall in Moscow on November 9, 2013 with the Agalarov family as local partners. According to the Senate Intelligence Committee's 2020 report, time was left open in Trump's schedule that afternoon in case Putin agreed to meet; instead Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov called to say Putin could not receive Trump because an official visit by the King of the Netherlands had run late, and Putin later sent Trump a letter and a lacquer box through Aras Agalarov. In an interview with MSNBC in Moscow that week Trump said 'I do have a relationship' with Putin and that Putin had 'done an amazing job'. At a news conference on July 27, 2016 he said: 'I have nothing to do with Putin. I've never spoken to him.'
Sources
- Tweet by @realDonaldTrump, June 18, 2013
- Report of the Select Committee on Intelligence, United States Senate, on Russian Active Measures Campaigns and Interference in the 2016 U.S. Election, Volume 5: Counterintelligence Threats and Vulnerabilities
- At The 2013 Miss Universe Contest, Trump Met Some Of Russia's Rich And Powerful
- Interview: Thomas Roberts of MSNBC Interviews Donald Trump in Moscow - November 2013
- News Conference in Doral, Florida