Trump-Putin summit: US president hails meeting amid outcry
Trump-Putin summit: US president reverses remark on Russia meddling
(about 2 hours later)
US President Donald Trump has hit back after facing fierce criticism over his summit with Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin.
US President Donald Trump has said he accepts US intelligence agencies' conclusion that Russia interfered in the 2016 election - despite declining to do so just a day ago.
He said the meeting had gone "even better" than the recent Nato summit.
After meeting Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin he said he could not see why Russia would meddle.
After talks with Mr Putin, he contradicted his own intelligence agencies by saying he could not see any reason why Russia would meddle in the 2016 US election that he won.
The comments drew outrage even among his supporters.
The remarks have angered even some of his supporters.
But he told reporters that he misspoke and had meant to say he saw no reason why it was not Russia that meddled.
In a tweet, Mr Trump alluded to last week's Nato summit, which ended with him saying he had secured extra money for defence - something disputed by allies in the Western military alliance.
He said he had full "faith and support" in US intelligence agencies and would take "strong action" to secure the US election process.
What did he say at the summit with Putin?
Mr Trump said that the interference had no impact on the election, which saw him defeat Hillary Clinton.
On Monday the US and Russian presidents held nearly two hours of one-on-one talks without their advisers in the Finnish capital Helsinki.
However, he did not respond when reporters asked him if he would condemn Mr Putin.
At a news conference afterwards, Mr Trump was asked if he believed his own intelligence agencies or the Russian president when it came to allegations of meddling in the 2016 presidential election.
At the summit in Helsinki on Monday, Mr Trump was asked if he believed his own intelligence agencies or the Russian president when it came to allegations of meddling in the 2016 presidential vote.
"President Putin says it's not Russia. I don't see any reason why it would be," he replied.
"President Putin says it's not Russia. I don't see any reason why it would be," he replied.
The US president was also asked whether he held Russia accountable on any particular issue.
He also upset some in the US by refusing to offer specific criticism of Russia, instead saying he held both countries responsible for their poor relations.
He declined to offer specific criticism, but said: "I think we've all been foolish. We should have had this dialogue a long time ago... And I think we're all to blame."
The Helsinki press conference drew strong condemnation: one of his Republican supporters, Newt Gingrich, said it was the "most serious mistake of his presidency" and Mr Trump had been urged to clarify his comments.
Why does it matter?
Mr Trump's comments put himself out of step with US intelligence agencies, which concluded that Russia was behind an effort to tip the 2016 US presidential election against Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton, with a state-authorised campaign of cyber-attacks and fake news stories planted on social media.
Top administration officials have accepted this conclusion, such as former CIA director Mike Pompeo who is now Mr Trump's secretary of state.
Some US politicians had called for the summit to be cancelled after 12 Russian military intelligence agents were indicted last week, accused of hacking Mrs Clinton's election campaign.
Aside from questions over the election, the US and Russia remain far apart on major issues, such as the Syria conflict, Russia's annexation of Crimea, and the US backing for the UK over the poisoning of a former Russian spy.
In their response, many US politicians simply refused to accept an equivalence between the US and Russia.
What's the reaction been?
Republican House Speaker Paul Ryan said there was no doubt Russia had meddled in US elections and that Mr Putin "does not share our values".
Another senior Republican, Senator John McCain, said it was "one of the most disgraceful performances by an American president in memory".
Trump ally Newt Gingrich said the comments were the "most serious mistake of his presidency", urging him to clarify.
Mr Trump's former communications director Anthony Scaramucci told CNN the "optics are bad" and "he has to reverse course immediately".
However, Mr Trump found support from Republican Senator Rand Paul, who blamed "Trump derangement syndrome" for the criticism - prompting a supportive tweet from the president himself.
At the summit, Mr Putin again denied meddling in the US election, and in a later interview dismissed longstanding reports that Russian intelligence may hold compromising material on Mr Trump.
The Russian president has won praise at home, with one tabloid saying he had "outmanoeuvred" the US president at the summit.
