Donald Trump addressed Russian President Vladimir Putin’s comments on the former president’s criminal charges in a confusingly worded post on his Truth Social platform early Wednesday.
“President Vladimir Putin of Russia is using Crooked Joe Biden’s illegal Banana Republic style treatment of his Political Opponent, who is beating him badly in the Polls, to condemn America and all of the good things it once stood for,” Trump wrote. “The whole World is watching as the USA is being torn apart by dreams of Election Interference!”
Trump, who is the front-runner for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination, appeared to be referring to comments Putin made at the Eastern Economic Forum in Vladivostok on Tuesday in which he said: “Everything that is happening with Trump is the persecution of a political rival for political reasons.”
“As far as the prosecution of Trump is concerned, this is good for us in today’s conditions, because it shows the rottenness of the American system, which cannot pretend to teach others about democracy,” he said.
Trump faces 91 criminal charges across four indictments at federal and state levels. The charges include scheming to overturn the 2020 election results and mishandling classified documents. He has pleaded not guilty in all cases.
Putin’s comments appear to echo Trump’s repeated assertions that the charges are part of a “witch hunt” orchestrated by President Joe Biden.
Trump has in the past boasted of a “good” relationship with Putin. In March, Trump claimed he could “fix” the war with Ukraine in a day if he were in the White House again but didn’t offer any details about how he would achieve that.
Putin brought that up in his comments on Tuesday. “We hear that Mr. Trump says that he will solve pressing problems in a few days, including the Ukrainian crisis. Well, this cannot but bring happiness. This is good,” he said.
Putin on Wednesday welcomed North Korean leader Kim Jong Un to Russia for a meeting that illustrates how their interests are aligning amid their various grievances with the United States.