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Action star Steven Seagal isn’t the only prominent American whom Russian President Vladimir Putin extended his warmest salutations to recently. President-elect Donald Trump also received a cordial message from the reputed demagogue, who reached out to the Republican nominee during a televised speech Wednesday morning. Considering the purported relationship (or lack thereof) between associates of both men, Putin’s kind words to Trump shouldn’t come as a surprise — even to everyone who assumed Hillary Clinton would win the election in a landslide.
“I would like to congratulate the American people with the end of the electoral cycle,” said Putin. “And I would also like to congratulate Mr. Donald Trump with his victory in these elections.”
The Russian president specifically mentioned Trump’s previous comments regarding the need to restore relations between the two countries, saying “We understand that the way to that would be difficult, taken into account the current state of degradation of relations between the U.S. and Russia.” He emphasized this state wasn’t his administration’s fault, but stressed “Russia is ready and wants to restore the full-fledged relations with the United States.”
In addition, Putin’s office delivered an official statement of congratulations to Trump via telegram, then published it on the Kremlin website. In it, he stated he wanted to pursue “a constructive dialogue between Moscow and Washington on the principles of equality, mutual respect and real consideration for each other’s position.”
(Via NBC News)