President Trump does not plan to congratulate Russian President Vladimir Putin on his election for a new six-year term, the White House said Monday, days after the U.S. agreed with Britain’s assessment that Moscow was behind a nerve agent attack in London earlier this month.
White House aides told reporters aboard Air Force One they were “not surprised by the outcome” of Sunday’s election in Moscow, where Putin secured a fourth term with the support of 76 percent of voters.
Though Trump is aware of Putin’s victory, deputy White House press secretary Hogan Gidley said the president did not have a phone call scheduled to congratulate his Russian counterpart.
The Trump administration released a joint statement with the leaders of Germany, France and the United Kingdom last Friday accusing Russia of carrying out the poisoning of an ex-spy and his 33-year-old daughter in the U.K. Both victims are still receiving treatment at a hospital in Salisbury.
“It sounds to me like it would be Russia based on all of the evidence they have,” Trump had said ahead of the joint statement.
The White House has declined to say whether it intends to join British Prime Minister Theresa May in leveling new sanctions against Moscow due to the attack.
