US has invited Putin to Washington, says Trump adviser Bolton
- Two leaders last met in July, an encounter that sparked backlash back home, even from some of the US president’s Republican allies
The White House has invited Russian President Vladimir Putin to Washington, US National Security Adviser John Bolton said on Friday.
“We have invited president Putin to Washington,” Bolton said. It was not immediately clear whether Putin had accepted the invitation.
Putin and Trump have met several times on the sidelines of multilateral gatherings, but only had one bilateral summit in the Finnish capital in July.
After that encounter, Trump was accused by opponents, and even some members of his own Republican Party, of failing to stand up to the Russian leader.
The topic of Putin visiting the US is a highly-charged one, because American intelligence agencies claim Russia interfered in the 2016 presidential election to help Trump win. Russian denies any election meddling.