Ahead of President Donald Trump's upcoming meeting with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin, Democrats and Republicans in the United States have shared worries about the possibility of a cozy meeting between the two, Reuters wrote.
After Trump called Putin a “competitor” and “not my enemy” on Thursday, lawmakers from both parties have voiced stern warnings to Trump not to go soft on the Russian leader when two presidents sit down together in Helsinki on Monday.
“Putin is not America's friend, nor merely a competitor. Putin is America's enemy — not because we wish it so, but because he has chosen to be,” Republican Senator John McCain said is a statement.
“It is up to President Trump to hold Putin accountable for his actions during the meeting in Helsinki. Failure to do so would be a serious indictment of his stewardship of American leadership in the world,” he added.
While Donald Trump sees his Monday meeting with Putin as a chance to ease bilateral tensions, legislators on Capitol Hill fear that Trump will fail to put hard questions to Putin over Russia's alleged meddling in the 2016 US presidential election and will go soft on the Russian leader to the detriment of America's allies in Europe, Reuters wrote.
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