Trump says kicking Putin out of G8 was a big mistake

[noumoe]

President Trump on Monday said kicking Russia out of the forum of the world’s largest economies contributed to Russia invading Ukraine.

He also said it is too late to bring Russian President Vladimir Putin back to the forum.

Mr. Trump is attending the gathering of leaders from the world’s seven largest economies, known as the Group of Seven, which began Sunday in Canada. The gathering used to be known as the Group of Eight before Mr. Putin was expelled.

“They threw Russia out, which I claimed was a very big mistake, even though I wasn’t in politics,” Mr. Trump said. “Putin is no longer at the table, so it makes life more complicated, but you wouldn’t have the war.”

Russia was removed from the forum as a penalty for annexing Crimea from Ukraine in 2014. President Obama and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau pushed to remove Russia, saying the move was in direct response to its actions.

https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/20 ... g-mistake/