Joe Biden’s attempt to portray President Trump as a tool of Russian interests is useful for the Kremlin, according to Russian President Vladimir Putin.
“In a way, it could be said that they are playing into our hands, as the saying goes,” Putin said during an interview with Russian media.
Putin has denied interfering in the 2016 presidential elections, but U.S. officials and lawmakers in both parties blame Russian military intelligence officers for the cyberattacks that culminated in the steady leak of Democratic emails during the campaign. His comment about the controversy came in response to Biden’s decision to dub Trump “Putin’s puppy” during the presidential debate last week.
“When anyone tries to humiliate or insult the incumbent head of state … this actually enhances our prestige, because they are talking about our incredible influence and power,” Putin said.
That statement dovetails with a bipartisan investigation conducted by the Republican-controlled Senate Intelligence Committee, which identified the 2016 election interference as “part of a broader, sophisticated, and ongoing information warfare campaign designed to sow discord in American politics and
society.”
One of Trump’s top intelligence advisers warned in August that Russia is once again “using a range of measures to primarily denigrate” Biden, but Putin denied involvement. “We are the onlookers; we do not interfere in the process,” he insisted.
