Trump sees tremendous potential of US-Russia ties after talks with Putin

FE Team | Published: May 06, 2019 01:32:30

WASHINGTON, May 05 (Agencies): US President Donald Trump on Saturday morning praised his latest call with Russian President Vladimir Putin, saying there is "tremendous potential" for US-Russia ties.
"Very good call yesterday with President Putin of Russia," Trump tweeted. "Tremendous potential for a good/great relationship with Russia, despite what you read and see in the Fake News Media."
"Look how they have misled you on 'Russia Collusion.' The World can be a better and safer place. Nice!" Trump added.
Trump tweeted on Friday that he has had a "very productive" talk with Putin on "trade, Venezuela, Ukraine, North Korea, Nuclear Arms Control and even the 'Russian Hoax.'"
White House spokeswoman Sarah Huckabee Sanders also told reporters that Trump and Putin had spoken for more than an hour.
For its part, the Kremlin said on the same day that Putin and Trump had also discussed the Korean Peninsula nuclear issue.
Putin informed Trump of the main results of his meeting with top leader of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) Kim Jong Un last week, saying that Pyongyang's "good-faith fulfillment of its commitments" should be accompanied by reciprocal steps to reduce the sanctions pressure on the DPRK.
Meanwhile, President Donald Trump criticised social media companies after Facebook banned a number of extremist figures, declaring that he was "monitoring and watching, closely!!"
Trump, who tweeted and re-tweeted complaints Friday and Saturday, said he would "monitor the censorship of AMERICAN CITIZENS on social media platforms." He has previously asserted that social media companies exhibit bias against conservatives, something the companies have rejected as untrue.
The president's comments came after Facebook this week banned Louis Farrakhan, Alex Jones and other extremists, saying they violated its ban on "dangerous individuals." The company also removed right-wing personalities Paul Nehlen, Milo Yiannopoulos, Paul Joseph Watson and Laura Loomer, along with Jones' site, Infowars, which often posts conspiracy theories. The latest bans apply both to Facebook's main service and to Instagram and extend to fan pages and other related accounts.
Facebook's move signaled renewed effort by the social media giant to remove people and groups promoting objectionable material such as hate, racism and anti-Semitism. The company said it has "always banned" people or groups that proclaim a violent or hateful mission or are engaged in acts of hate or violence, regardless of political ideology.
On Twitter, Trump cited a number of individuals he said were being unfairly treated by social media companies, including Watson and actor James Woods. He insisted it was "getting worse and worse for Conservatives on social media!"
Woods, one of Hollywood's most outspoken conservatives, has had his Twitter account locked. Twitter spokeswoman Katie Rosborough said Woods will need to delete a tweet that violated Twitter rules before he can be reinstated.
Trump tweeted: "How can it be possible that James Woods (and many others), a strong but responsible Conservative Voice, is banned from Twitter? Social Media & Fake News Media, together with their partner, the Democrat Party, have no idea the problems they are causing for themselves. VERY UNFAIR!"
Rosborough said Twitter enforces its rules "impartially for all users, regardless of their background or political affiliation."
Trump, who uses Twitter extensively to push his message, recently met with Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey at the White House after attacking the company and complaining that it was not treating him well because he was a Republican. He later described it as a "great meeting."