U.S. President Donald Trump and Russia's President Vladimir Putin talk during the family photo session at the APEC Summit in Danang, Vietnam November 11, 2017. REUTERS/Jorge Silva
NBC: Trump tells aides not to talk publicly about Russia policy moves
But Trump, irked by Putin's nuclear buildup, told him last week: "If you want to have an arms race we can do that, but I'll win."
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump's national security advisers spent months trying to convince him to sign off on a plan to supply new U.S. weapons to Ukraine to aid in the country's fight against Russian-backed separatists, according to multiple senior administration officials.
Yet when the president finally authorized the major policy shift, he told his aides not to publicly tout his decision, officials said. Doing so, Trump argued, might agitate Russian President Vladimir Putin, according to the officials.
"He doesn't want us to bring it up," one White House official said. "It is not something he wants to talk about."
The White House declined to comment.
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WNU Editor: The key paragraph in the above NBC report ....
.... Two officials said Trump told Putin during a phone call last week after Putin's re-election: "If you want to have an arms race we can do that, but I'll win." Trump added that he hoped that Putin’s comments were just election rhetoric and bragged that he’d just secured a $700 billion defense budget, the largest the U.S. has ever had, he said, according to one of the officials.
The Russian response has been from no comment to a denial .... Kremlin Not Confirming Trump Told Putin US Will Win Arms Race Against Russia (Sputnik) .... to .... Kremlin: Trump did not speak about US readiness to win arms race in talk with Putin. (TASS).
More News On Reports That President Trump Told Russian President Putin That The U.S. Would Win An Arms Race
Trump to Putin: 'If you want to have an arms race we can do that, but I'll win': report -- The Hill
Trump Tells Putin: ‘I’ll Win Arms Race,' U.S. Media Report -- Moscow Times
Donald Trump 'tells Vladimir Putin: "If there is an arms race, 'I’ll win"' -- The Independent
'I'll win': Trump reportedly told Putin he would beat him in a nuclear arms race -- Business Insider