Trump Secretly Stayed in Touch With Putin After Leaving Office, Book Says

In a recent book, journalist Bob Woodward reveals that while he was still president, Donald J. Trump discreetly sent Vladimir Putin some of the rare Covid-19 testing machines for the Russian leader's private use.

According to a new book by journalist Bob Woodward, former President Donald J. Trump has had hidden conversations with Russian President Vladimir V. Putin up to seven times since his presidency ended. This occurred while he was urging Republicans to prevent military assistance to Ukraine in its struggle against Russian forces.

The upcoming book, titled “War,” set to be released next week, recounts an incident from early 2024 at Mar-a-Lago, the Florida estate of former President Trump. During this event, he instructed a staff member to leave his office so he could have a phone conversation with Mr. Putin. According to the unnamed aide, it’s possible that Trump and Putin had spoken several times since Trump’s departure from the White House.

The book reveals that while Mr. Trump was still president at the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020, he discreetly sent test machines from Abbott Point of Care to Mr. Putin for his personal use. At that time, these machines were quite rare. Mr. Putin, who was reportedly quite worried about contracting the virus, asked Mr. Trump to keep the gift under wraps, fearing it could harm the American president's political standing. "I’d prefer if you didn't mention it, as people would get upset with you, not me," Mr. Putin allegedly said.

The revelations bring up fresh inquiries regarding Mr. Trump’s ties with Mr. Putin, coming just weeks ahead of an election that could see the former president return to the White House. The New York Times managed to get a copy of the book, while The Washington Post, where Mr. Woodward has been a reporter for over fifty years, along with CNN, where he frequently serves as a commentator, also covered the book on Tuesday.

Mr. Woodward, known for his groundbreaking coverage of the Watergate scandal and his numerous best-selling books filled with revealing information from influential sources, based his claims about ongoing communication between Mr. Trump and Mr. Putin on the word of an unnamed Trump staff member. This aide did not provide any specific information other than mentioning that there had been, in Mr. Woodward's words, “possibly up to seven” interactions. There was no independent verification available on Tuesday.

Mr. Trump's campaign reacted to Mr. Woodward's book by attacking the author with personal insults, labeling him as “a complete sleazebag” and describing him as “slow, sluggish, inept, and generally a dull individual with no charisma.” However, they did not engage with any of the specific content mentioned in the book.

"All of the fictional narratives created by Bob Woodward are false and stem from a seriously disturbed individual afflicted with an extreme case of Trump Derangement Syndrome," stated Steven Cheung, the campaign communications director. Cheung emphasized that Trump did not grant Woodward permission to write the book and mentioned that the former president is in the process of suing the author concerning a prior publication.

The Kremlin also refuted the claims made in Mr. Woodward’s book regarding discussions between Mr. Trump and Mr. Putin, as well as the issue of Covid tests. Dmitri Peskov, a spokesperson, stated in a text message, “This is false. It’s just a typical fabricated story related to the election campaigning.”

Although the Trump campaign's statement mostly rejected Mr. Woodward's version of events, it did not clearly address whether the former president had any conversations with Mr. Putin after leaving office. The campaign also did not quickly answer a question about this. However, Mr. Trump's repeated admiration for the Kremlin leader has consistently puzzled even his own staff, led to various investigations, and raised concerns among Republican experts on national security.

U.S. intelligence officials determined that Mr. Putin instructed the Russian government to interfere in the 2016 elections in order to assist Mr. Trump in defeating former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. Mr. Trump, however, dismissed this conclusion, indicating that he accepted Mr. Putin's denial. Although special counsel Robert S. Mueller III did not uncover enough evidence of a criminal conspiracy to secure a conviction, he noted an unusually high number of interactions between Russia and individuals associated with Mr. Trump during the campaign.

Since stepping down from the presidency, Mr. Trump has maintained his admiration for Mr. Putin. He referred to the Russian leader as a "genius" during Moscow's invasion of Ukraine in 2022 and has consistently avoided saying that Ukraine should prevail in the conflict. Trump has spoken out against U.S. financial support for Ukraine and has urged Republican lawmakers not to endorse additional aid. He has claimed that if he is re-elected, he would be able to broker a resolution to the war in Ukraine within a day, even before he officially takes office.

Mr. Trump hasn't detailed his plan for this, but the conditions outlined by his vice-presidential candidate, Senator JD Vance from Ohio, last month resembled what Mr. Putin is likely seeking. According to Mr. Vance, Russia could maintain control over the Ukrainian land it has forcibly taken, breaching international law, in exchange for a promise from Ukraine to remain neutral and refrain from joining NATO.

In an interview on “60 Minutes” on Monday night, Vice President Kamala Harris spoke out against Donald Trump’s connections to Vladimir Putin. She stated, “At this moment, we are backing Ukraine in its fight to protect itself from Russia's unwarranted attacks.” She added, “If Donald Trump were in charge, Putin would likely be in Kyiv right now. When he claims he could resolve everything on day one, what does that really mean? It’s essentially about giving up.”

Mr. Woodward’s book does not reveal the contents of the phone call between Mr. Trump and Mr. Putin that took place in early 2024, nor does it elaborate on the other calls referenced by the Trump advisor. It includes a statement from Jason Miller, a senior campaign advisor to Mr. Trump, who mentioned that he wasn’t aware of any conversations happening between them, so he disagreed with that notion. However, Mr. Miller also acknowledged that if they did wish to communicate, they would certainly know how to reach one another.

Avril D. Haines, who was appointed as the director of national intelligence by President Biden, was cautious when responding to Mr. Woodward's inquiry. She stated, "I can't claim to know about all interactions with Putin," and added, "I can't comment on what President Trump may or may not have done."

Ex-presidents occasionally engage with leaders from other countries after their time in office. For example, Mr. Trump has welcomed figures like Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban at his Mar-a-Lago estate. Unlike some less publicized encounters, these gatherings were widely reported, and Mr. Trump made sure to take photos with his visitors.

It would be quite unexpected for a former president to have a private conversation with a major American rival like Mr. Putin without getting approval from the sitting administration, particularly now that the U.S. and Russia are on opposing sides in a European conflict. Since Russia invaded Ukraine, Mr. Biden has not had any discussions with Mr. Putin.

Peter Baker serves as the main White House reporter for The Times. He has reported on the last five presidents and occasionally produces in-depth analysis that contextualizes their actions and administrations within a broader historical perspective. To learn more about Peter Baker, click here.