Michael Cohen, President Donald Trump’s personal attorney, on Tuesday said that “at least there’s a relationship” between his boss and Russian President Vladimir Putin, though Trump has come under fire for his perceived coziness with the autocrat.
“Is there regret for the President having been so quiet, so forgiving of Russia up until now?” CNN’s Chris Cuomo asked. “He’d been very forgiving. He was very slow to want to condemn Putin on any level. Now look where we are.”
“Now why is that bad? So at least there’s a relationship that’s been started between the President and President Putin,” Cohen replied.
Tensions have risen between the U.S. and Russia after Trump approved a military strike against a Syrian air field on Thursday night in the wake of an apparent chemical weapons attack in Syria that left dozens of civilians dead.
Putin on Friday called the missile strike “an act of aggression,” and Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev said on Friday that U.S.-Russia relations were “completely ruined.”
Secretary of State Rex Tillerson traveled to Moscow on Tuesday to meet with his counterpart, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov.
Ahead of his trip, Tillerson told reporters that Russia “failed in its responsibility” to ensure that Syria was free of chemical weapons.
“We want to relieve the suffering of the Syrian people. Russia can be a part of that future and play an important role,” he said. “Or Russia can maintain its alliance with this group, which we believe is not going to serve Russia’s interests longer term.”
Cohen on Tuesday said that as a result of their “relationship,” Trump “can actually reach out to” Putin to have a conversation that is “not already predicated on tension.”
“The President will get done what he needs to get done,” Cohen said.
Trump attorney @MichaelCohen212 defends Trump’s relationship with Russia, says “at least there is one” https://t.co/ILK8mBrnS4
— New Day (@NewDay) April 11, 2017
