NYT Fake News on Nonexistent Second Putin/Trump Meeting at G20
by Stephen Lendman (stephenlendman.org – Home – Stephen Lendman)
On July 7, both leaders met on the sidelines of the Hamburg, Germany G20 summit.
No second meeting occurred as falsely reported – by The Times and other media scoundrels. A White House statement called the allegation “false, malicious and absurd.”
Trump called “(f)ake news…of a secret (meeting at dinner) with Putin ‘sick,’ “ adding:
“All G20 leaders, and spouses, were invited by the Chancellor of Germany. Press knew!”
Earlier The Times lied, claiming “Trump and Putin held a second, undisclosed private conversation…a one-on-one discussion over dinner that lasted as long as an hour and relied solely on a Kremlin-provided interpreter.”
On July 21, The Times repeated the Big Lie, claiming Trump met with Putin, an “adversar(y), one-on-one, with little evident preparation and no other American representative present.”
(His) unique affinity for (Russia’s leader) is an additional reason to be concerned.”
“The encounter occurred July 7 on the sidelines of a banquet attended by the G-20 leaders and their spouses.”
“The president left his chair and walked over to speak with Mr. Putin. Mr. Trump said the conversation lasted 15 minutes, but other reports suggest it may have been as long as an hour.”
Fact: All G20 leaders and their spouses were present at dinner, along with interpreters.
Fact: Trump mixed informally with a number of his counterparts, likely most of them. It’s common practice for G20 leaders to meet formally and informally at these meetings.
Fact: No second unannounced Trump/Putin meeting occurred – not at dinner or throughout the two-day meeting. The Times lied claiming otherwise – part of its daily Trump bashing drumbeat.
Fact: At dinner, Melania Trump was seated next to Putin. Trump sat between the wives of the Japanese and Argentinian presidents.
Fact: As dinner was concluding, he went over to his wife. He spoke briefly with Putin. A Russian translator was used because the US one spoke no Russian.
Fact: There was no second Trump/Putin meeting, just a brief informal conversation at the end of dinner. Claiming otherwise is willful deception – a NYT specialty.
The Times: “Mr. Putin…is an adversary, not an ally.”
Fact: False! Putin is an adversary of no one. All US administrations are adversarial toward independent governments America doesn’t control.
The Times: “What message did Mr. Trump send to the other G-20 leaders, including America’s strongest allies, by showering Mr. Putin with such attention?
Fact: The above and virtually all else on vital issues is disgraceful Times trash – fake news instead of the real thing.
Sergey Lavrov mocked reports of a second Putin/Trump G20 meeting, saying they may have met several times in Hamburg.
They met formally and briefly at dinner. “Maybe they went to the toilet together…There is also a room where they get together before an event starts. They cannot arrive all at the same time on the bus.”
“After the dinner was over…I was not there…President Trump apparently went to pick up his wife and spent some minutes with President Putin. So what!”
Bilateral discussions face-to-face and by phone is standard practice for all leaders. The Times disgracefully made a mountain out of nothing.
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