British Prime Minister Theresa May announced that Britain plans to expel 23 Russian diplomats as retaliation against Russia for its alleged poisoning of Russian spy Sergei Skripal and his daughter in Salisbury last week. On Tuesday, President Trump reluctantly spoke about the alleged poisoning.
President Donald Trump: “Well, it sounds to me—I’m speaking to Theresa May today. It sounds to me like it would be Russia, based on all of the evidence they have. … It sounds to me like they believe it was Russia. And I would certainly take that finding as fact.”
Reporter: “Mr. President, do you believe there should be a response from the United States? Do you believe there should be a response from the United States?”
President Donald Trump: “Yeah, as soon as we get the facts straight. And we’re going to be speaking with the British today. We’re speaking with Theresa May today. And as soon as we get the facts straight, if we agree with them, we will condemn Russia or whoever it may be.”
Both Trump and White House have been reluctant to blame Russia for the alleged poisoning. On Monday, former Secretary of State Rex Tillerson broke from the White House and issued a statement condemning Russia for the attack. He was fired only hours later.