Trump backs US agencies on Russian meddling claims
The US President also said he believes Russian President Vladimir Putin when he claims his country did not interfere in the 2016 US presidential election to help Trump win.
US President Donald Trump chats with Russia's President Vladimir Putin as they attend the APEC Economic Leaders' Meeting in Danang, Vietnam on November 11, 2017
US President Donald Trump said on Sunday he backed US intelligence agencies who concluded that Russia meddled in the 2016 US presidential election, but repeated his trust in the sincerity of Vladimir Putin's denials and slammed critics of his relationship with the Russian leader.
Key former Trump aides are under US investigation for possible collaboration with the Kremlin and the issue of whether Moscow interfered with last year's vote has overshadowed the tail end of the president's ongoing Asia tour.
TRT World's Arabella Munroe has more.
Trump returned to the subject in an early morning Twitter storm, which also saw him take a sarcastic dig at North Korea's "short and fat" leader Kim Jong-Un.
Addressing a press conference in Hanoi, Trump was asked to clarify comments he had made on Air Force One the day before about Putin's insistence that Moscow had never tried to affect the outcome of the US vote.
"I believe he feels he and Russia did not meddle in the election," Trump said.
"As to whether or not I believe it or not, I'm with our agencies. I believe in our... intelligence agencies," he added.
Met with President Putin of Russia who was at #APEC meetings. Good discussions on Syria. Hope for his help to solve, along with China the dangerous North Korea crisis. Progress being made.
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) November 12, 2017
When will all the haters and fools out there realize that having a good relationship with Russia is a good thing, not a bad thing. There always playing politics - bad for our country. I want to solve North Korea, Syria, Ukraine, terrorism, and Russia can greatly help!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) November 12, 2017
ASEAN Summit
From Vietnam, Trump left for the Philippines , the last stop on his tour, for a meeting with leaders of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).
In August, the foreign ministers of the Southeast Asian countries and China adopted a negotiating framework for a code of conduct in the South China Sea, although critics see it as a tactic to buy China time to consolidate its power.
The framework seeks to advance a 2002 Declaration of Conduct (DOC) of Parties in the South China Sea, which has mostly been ignored by claimant states, particularly China, which has built seven man-made islands in disputed waters, three of them equipped with runways, surface-to-air missiles and radars.
All parties say the framework is only an outline for how the code will be established and critics raise doubts about how effective the pact will be.
The framework will be endorsed by China and ASEAN members at a summit in Manila on Monday, a diplomat from one of the regional bloc's countries said.
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