Putin Denies Meeting Trump Before He Became POTUS, Despite Trump’s Previous Claims

It appears there’s been some conflicting communication about the communication that may or may not have taken place between Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Before becoming president, Trump had claimed numerous times that he had met and spoke with the Russian leader. He told David Letterman in 2013 that they met “once,” he said in another interview that they had a “relationship” on the day of his Miss Universe pageant in Moscow, and in 2014, Trump claimed that while in Russia, he spoke “indirectly and directly” with Putin and said he “could not have been nicer.” But then in July 2016, during a press conference as a presidential candidate, he said he had “never met Putin.”

Well, during an interview with NBC News’ Megyn Kelly, Putin recalled their communication (or lack thereof) a bit differently.

“Donald came over here to Russia even before he was a candidate. I didn’t even know that he had been here. Well, in other words, I found out after the fact,” Putin told Kelly. “I was told that he in fact had been in Russia. I had no clue that he was in Russia.”

Kelly then asked Putin about Trump’s years-old claims that they “knew” each other and that they spoke and whether they were true.

“No, I never met him,” Putin responded. “Before––before his presidency? Before he ran?”

“Before he ran,” Kelly followed.

“No, I didn’t know him. I never even talked to him on the phone or otherwise.”

Watch the clip above, via NBC.

[image via screengrab]

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