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Putin Says He’ll Hand Over Records of Envoys’ Meeting With Trump

Russian President Vladimir Putin said Wednesday he can verify that President Donald Trump did not share secrets with Russian officials because he has the transcripts of Trump's meeting with the envoys to prove it.

WASHINGTON (CN) - Russian President Vladimir Putin said Wednesday he can verify that President Donald Trump did not share secrets with Russian officials because he has the transcripts of Trump's meeting with the envoys to prove it.

Speaking with reporters in Moscow, Putin said he is willing to hand over the records of President Trump's May 10 meeting with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and Ambassador Sergey Kislyak on one condition: the White House must first approve.

Putin has consistently denied reports that classified secrets were leaked during Trump's meeting with Lavrov and Kislyak last week.

During a joint press conference with Italian Prime Minster Paolo Gentiloni, Putin said the US is awash in "political schizophrenia" and that the chaotic situation in Washington is "eliciting concern" in Russia.

"If the administration of the United States deems this possible, we will be ready to provide a transcript of the Lavrov-Trump meeting to the US Senate and Congress," Putin said.

At that same press conference, Putin also had harsh words for US lawmakers, calling their sentiment toward his country "stupid" and "dangerous."

On the CBS show  "This Morning," Rep. Adam Schiff, D.-Calif., didn't seem thrilled with the offer.

"Probably the last person [Trump] needs to vouch for him right now is Vladimir Putin," Schiff said Wednesday.

The ranking democrat on the House Intelligence Committee quickly added, "Sure, send it our way. But its credibility would be less than zero."

President Trump was in Groton, Connecticut Wednesday morning to speak at the US Coast Guard Academy commencement ceremony and did not immediately comment on Putin's remarks either through his Twitter account or his White House spokesman Sean Spicer.

Late Tuesday, however, the president appeared to want to shift blame for the controversy on those who told reporters of his alleged sharing of classified information and the purported memo suggesting he told former FBI Director James Comey to quash the investigation into Michael Flynn and Russian meddling in the 2016 election.

"I have been asking Director Comey and others, from the beginning of my administration, to find the LEAKERS in the intelligence community," Trump Tweeted Tuesday night.

Categories / Government, International, National, Politics

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