Is Trump's attempt to win Putin over a play against China?

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Europe

The much-anticipated meeting between US President Trump and Russian President Putin in Helsinki is over. After nearly two hours behind closed doors and another hour in front of the press, Putin described the Helsinki meeting as "candid and useful" while Trump said there had been "deeply productive dialogue."

However, not everyone holds the same view. Former CIA Director John Brennan said Trump’s statements at the news conference were enough for Congress to consider impeachment.

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“Donald Trump’s press conference performance in Helsinki rises to and exceeds the threshold of ‘high crimes & misdemeanors.’ It was nothing short of treasonous,” Brennan tweeted. “Not only were Trump’s comments imbecilic, he is wholly in the pocket of Putin. Republican Patriots: Where are you?”

“Nobody knows exactly why he craves the approval of Vladimir Putin, and that’s what is bothering everybody,” said Einar Tangen, a CGTN current affairs commentator.

An interesting detail that was overlooked by many was Trump’s mention of Chinese President Xi Jinping.

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“It’s interesting that President Trump said that they should discuss their mutual friend Mr. Xi. But in Russia, it’s considered a bit impolite to talk about a third person when he is not present,” said Alexander Lukin, a professor at the National Research University in Russia.

Whether or not this meant that Trump was looking for Russia’s support against China in the trade war, is unknown. However, Lukin said this was unlikely to happen.

“We (Russia) have a strategic partnership with China, and China is a much better friend than the US,” Lukin added.

(The Point with Liu Xin is one of a current affairs program on CGTN. The program comments on global news through Liu Xin’s unique perspective.)