British politician Nigel Farage has praised Russian President Vladimir Putin for his “mature” decision not to expel American diplomats in response to a similar move by Washington.
“Pleased to see a mature response from Putin,” Farage tweeted on Friday.
The former leader of the UK Independence Party (UKIP), who has cultivated a close relationship with US President-elect Donald Trump, expressed dissatisfaction over what he said “a real Donald Trump presidency can't come soon enough.”
Trump has also praised Putin after he rejected on Friday a foreign ministry proposal to retaliate against US President Barack Obama’s decision to expel Russian diplomats.
Putin even rejected to close a wooded picnic area on a Moscow River island used by diplomats, saying he did not want to deprive their children. He also sent a New Year’s greetings to Obama, his family, Trump and “all the American people.”
Putin said Washington’s move to expel Russian diplomats was designed to provoke a reaction from Kremlin, “but we will not sink to the level of this irresponsible ‘kitchen’ diplomacy.”
“We will take further moves on restoring Russian-American relations based on the policies that the administration of President-elect Donald Trump adopts,” he added.
On Thursday, Obama ordered a series of new sanctions against Russia and expelled 35 Russian diplomats over allegations that they interfered in the US 2016 presidential election through cyberattacks. Russia denied the hacking accusations.
Should Putin have chosen to retaliate against Washington, he would likely have deepened the current rift between the US and Russia, and would have left the Trump administration with a diplomatic standoff from the very beginning. Putin’s move, which is considered as a gesture of good will, could now disarm his American critics and give Trump more room to maneuver on restoring ties with Russia.
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