A Russian politician has said the Kremlin's initial refusal to confirm or deny contacts between Vladimir Putin and President Donald Trump had helped the latter. Duma deputy Oleg Morozov told the Russia 1 channel that Moscow was being "very careful to support Trump" by remaining ambiguous on whether contact had been made between the two.

Kremlin propagandists have welcomed decisions made by the new U.S. president such as imposing tariffs on China.