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"So
many people at the higher ends of intelligence loved my press
conference performance in Helsinki. Putin and I discussed many
important subjects at our earlier meeting. We got along well
which truly bothered many haters who wanted to see a boxing
match. Big results will come!" he said on Twitter.
"While the NATO meeting in Brussels was an acknowledged triumph,
with billions of dollars more being put up by member countries
at a faster pace, the meeting with Russia may prove to be, in
the long run, an even greater success. Many positive things will
come out of that meeting," he tweeted.
Trump sought on Tuesday to calm the storm over what critics said
was his failure to hold Putin accountable for what U.S
intelligence agencies said was meddling in the 2016 U.S.
election, saying he misspoke in the joint news conference in
Helsinki.
Trump on Monday shied away from criticizing the Russian leader
for Moscow's actions to undermine the election and cast doubt on
U.S. intelligence agencies, prompting calls by some U.S.
lawmakers for tougher sanctions and other actions to punish
Russia. Putin denies any Russian interference in the vote.
"I said the word 'would' instead of 'wouldn't,'" Trump told
reporters at the White House, more than 24 hours after his
appearance with Putin. "The sentence should have been, 'I don't
see any reason why it wouldn't be Russia.'"
Trump hailed last week's NATO summit in Europe as victory for
his tough stance of demanding the United States' European allies
make big new defense spending pledges.
(Writing by Alison Williams in London; Editing by Jon Boyle)
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