A day after Russian President Vladimir Putin said that President Donald Trump’s decision to withdraw American troops from Syria was “a correct one,” White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders dismissed as “ridiculous” and “silly” the “idea” that Putin was happy about the withdrawal.
“The idea that Putin is happy about this is ridiculous,” Sanders told reporters outside the White House Friday morning. “He’s not. This puts a greater emphasis and makes them have to actually step up and do something, and do more in the region. It puts them at a greater risk. So I think that’s just silly.”
That contradicts Putin’s own statement on the withdrawal: “If the decision to withdraw was made, then it is a correct one,” the Russian president said Thursday, per CNN.
Putin wasn’t alone. A spokesperson for Russia’s foreign ministry said the American withdrawal could precede “a milestone” in Syria.
“A milestone story which might evolve from this decision is a real prospect for a political solution,” the spokesperson, Maria Zakharova, said.
