Russia explores coronavirus diagnostic agreement specifics with Trump's administration
After newspaper journalist Bob Woodward brought up claims about Donald Trump sending COVID-19 tests to Vladimir Putin, Russia spoke out. As per reports, the initial tests didn't perform as expected. There have been whispers of something being sent from Moscow to Washington in response.
The turbulence stirred up by Woodward's revelations led Kremlin spokesman Dmitri Peskov to confirm that Trump indeed sent COVID-19 tests to Putin. Peskov described it as international cooperation during a global pandemic.
Woodward's upcoming book mentions that these tests were sent to Russia despite shortages in the US. The tests failed initially, Peskov explained. During the early stages of the pandemic, necessary equipment was scarce. In turn, Russia provided ventilators to America. "They sent us these tests," said Peskov.
Peskov also echoed Woodward's statements about several calls between Putin and Trump after the latter left the White House in 2021. Peskov, however, discredited these reports, stating, "That's not true, it didn't happen."
Rumors of Putin's advice to Trump
Woodward's pre-published excerpt from his upcoming book "War" hints that Trump had maintained contact with Putin up to seven times post his White House departure. An anonymous source shares this information.
According to Woodward, Putin accepted the COVID-19 tests but advised Trump to keep the delivery a secret. Putin supposedly warned Trump, "I don't want you to tell anyone, because then people will be angry with you, not with me." Trump, who was runing for the Republicans during the US presidential election on November 5, was urged to keep this hush-hush.
Woodward has a long-standing reputation in journalism, covering various US presidents for over 50 years. He and his "Washington Post" colleague Carl Bernstein rose to fame in the 1970s due to their investigations into the Watergate wiretapping scandal involving President Richard Nixon.
In response to the claims made by Bob Woodward, Putin received COVID-19 tests from Trump, despite the initial tests failing. Putin was advised by Trump to keep this secret, with Putin warning that people would be angry with Trump, not him.
