Numerous Republicans have joined in condemning the Russian president Vladimir V. Putin following the announcement by the Russian authorities of the death of Aleksei A. Navalnya vocal opposition leader.
However, presidential candidate Nikki Haley went a step further, using her criticism of Putin to target her rival in the Republican primary, the former president Donald Trumpregarding his previous statements praising Putin, the New York Times reported.
“Putin did this. The same Putin that Donald Trump praises and defends,” Haley, a former governor of South Carolina who also served as Trump’s representative to the United Nations, published on social media platform X, formerly Twitter, on Friday.
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He referenced comments made by Trump during his 2015 presidential campaign, during which he told ABC’s George Stephanopoulos: “In fairness to Putin, you’re saying he killed people. I did not see it.”
Navalny, an anti-corruption activist openly critical of Putin, has died in a prison in the Arctic Circle.
Biden said that while US officials do not have a complete understanding of the situation, he believes there is “no doubt that Navalny’s death was a consequence of something that Putin and his henchmen did.”
Trump has remained silent about Navalny’s death, leading Haley to criticize his lack of response, the New York Times added.
He pointed out on X that “Putin killed his political opponent and Trump didn’t say a word after saying he would encourage Putin to invade our allies. However, he has posted more than 20 times on social media about his legal drama and fake polls.
Watch this: Joe Biden says Russian president is ‘responsible’ for mysterious death of critic Alexei Navalny: ‘further evidence of… brutality’
Haley’s criticism of Trump’s approach to foreign policy, particularly his stance toward Putin, has increased.
He informed voters during recent appearances in South Carolina that Trump had sided with “a thug,” following his statement in South Carolina last weekend when he hinted at the possibility of “encouraging” Russia to attack NATO allies for failing to meet their military alliance’s payments.
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This content was partially produced with the help of artificial intelligence tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.
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