Russia and Putin · First term · № 50
Discussed the 'Russian Hoax' with Putin and did not raise interference in future elections
“We didn't discuss that. Really, we didn't discuss it.”
- Said
- , Oval Office, remarks with Prime Minister Peter Pellegrini of Slovakia
- Subject
- Putin call after Mueller
- Type
- Intelligence and security
- Topic
- Elections
- Era
- First term
What happened
Trump and Putin spoke by phone for more than an hour on May 3, 2019, which appeared to be their first conversation since the end of special counsel Robert Mueller's investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election. Trump tweeted that they had discussed trade, Venezuela, Ukraine, North Korea, arms control "and even the 'Russian Hoax.'" Asked whether he had told Putin not to meddle in the next election, he said they had not discussed it, and recounted that Putin "sort of smiled" and said the matter "started off as a mountain, and it ended up being a mouse." He also said Putin was "not looking at all to get involved in Venezuela"; Secretary of State Mike Pompeo had said that week that Russia persuaded Nicolas Maduro not to leave the country. Press secretary Sarah Sanders said the administration takes election meddling seriously.