Trump says 'might' ask Putin to extradite accused Russian hackers

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US President Donald Trump said he had low expectations for the Monday summit with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin just days after 12 Russian intelligence officers were charged by a federal grand jury for hacking the Democrats ahead of the 2016 election.

The summit, which comes at one of the most crucial junctures for the West since the 1991 fall of the Soviet Union, has perturbed some European allies who fear Putin might seek a grand deal that undermines the US-led transatlantic alliance.

People attend "Helsinki Calling" protest ahead of a meeting between US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin in Helsinki, Finland, July 15, 2018. /Reuters Photo

Trump, who has been preparing for the summit by playing golf at his Trump Turnberry course on the western coast of Scotland, told CBS in an interview that “nothing bad” would come out of the summit with Putin.

“I go in with low expectations,” Trump told CBS in Turnberry. “I’m not going with high expectations.”

Trump has also said he may ask Putin during their upcoming summit meeting to extradite to the US 12 Russian intelligence officers accused of attempting to interfere with the 2016 presidential election.

"I think the DNC (Democratic National Committee) should be ashamed of themselves for allowing themselves to be hacked," he said. "They had bad defenses and they were able to be hacked. But I heard they were trying to hack the Republicans too. But – and this may be wrong – but they had much stronger defenses."

A message is displayed on a video wall at the Helsinki Music Center, ahead of the meeting between US President Donald Trump and Russia President Vladimir Putin in Helsinki, Finland, July 15, 2018. /Reuters Phoro

Trump also defended his decision to hold the meeting after coming under fire from opposition Democrats in the wake of the indictments.

"I think it's a good thing to meet," he said. "I believe that having a meeting with Chairman Kim was a good thing. I think having meetings with the president of China was a very good thing.

"I believe it's really good. So having meetings with Russia, China, Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), I believe in it. Nothing bad is going to come out of it, and maybe some good will come out."

Source(s): AFP ,Reuters