The absence of any congratulatory message from President Donald Trump to Vladimir Putin on his re-election victory is not an unfriendly move, a Kremlin spokesman told reporters, adding that “this should not be regarded as an unfriendly step. Putin remains open to normalizing relations with our US partners, where it is of interest and crucial.”
Besides, the spokesperson said, “the president has been getting many congratulatory messages from foreign leaders. Some may be unable to make a phone call due to a tight schedule, and others, for a different reason. There is no reason to make a mountain out of a molehill about anything here.”
Also, he went on to say, “Putin has been receiving more congratulations from his foreign counterparts on Tuesday.” So no one is insulted at the Kremlin.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday dutifully sent his congratulatory message to President Putin: “Dear Mr. President, accept my sincere congratulations on your election victory yesterday. I greatly value our personal dialogue and I look forward to continuing to work closely together in the spirit of trust and understanding to promote our countries’ vital interests.”
See? Bibi sent one – why didn’t trump congratulate the man he usually discusses in glowing terms.
“Some telephone conversations are underway at the moment. We’ll brief you on them,” the spokesperson said, adding that phone calls would continue all afternoon.
White House Deputy Spokesman Hogan Gidley did tell the press that “We’re not surprised by the outcome” of the Russian vote, but currently there are no plans for a telephone conversation between Trump and Putin.
For the record, all of us were very surprised by the outcome of the US elections. Just thought you wanted to know.