President-elect Donald Trump responded Friday to a letter sent from Russian President Vladimir Putin last week wishing the president-elect a merry Christmas and urging the U.S. to work more closely with Russia.
Trump said, “A very nice letter from Vladimir Putin; his thoughts are so correct.”
“Serious global and regional challenges, which our countries have to face in recent years, show that the relations between Russia and the U.S. remain an important factor in ensuring stability and security of the modern world,” Putin wrote in the unofficial translation of a letter dated Dec. 15 provided to media.
The Russian president added: “I hope that after you assume the position of the President of the United States of America we will be able – by acting in a constructive and pragmatic manner – to take real steps to restore the framework of bilateral cooperation in different areas as well as bring our level of collaboration on the international scene to a qualitatively new level.”
Trump said that, “I hope both sides are able to live up to these thoughts, and we do not have to travel an alternate path.”
The president-elect has vowed to grow stronger ties with the Russian government, a position that puts him at odds with the Democratic Party and several members of the Republican Party, as many legislators have accused Russia of interfering with America’s election.
Christmas Letter From Putin To Trump by Paul Conner on Scribd