Nikki Haley, the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, on Sunday said that there is “no question” Russia was involved in the U.S. presidential election.
Speaking in television interviews broadcast Sunday and quoted by The Associated Press, Haley contended there is no contradiction between her tough stance and President Donald Trump’s repeated public statements seeking to minimize Russia’s role.
She added that Trump “has not once” told her to stop “beating up on Russia” and stressed Trump would fully support strong action against the Kremlin once investigations are complete.
“We don’t want any country involved in our elections, ever,” Haley said, according to AP. “We need to be very strong on that.”
Russian President Vladimir Putin has denied his country meddled in the election between Trump and Democrat Hillary Clinton. While Trump himself has accepted intelligence reports concluding that Russia engaged in cyber attacks during the November presidential election, he has repeatedly lambasted as “fake news” any suggestion that he or his staff had connections to Russia.
In Sunday's interviews, Haley said she was “beating up on Russia” over issues such as its actions in Crimea and its dispute with Ukraine.
Asked if she believes Trump should publicly take a harder Russia stance, she replied, “Of course, he’s got a lot of things he’s doing.”
“There’s no love or anything going on with Russia right now,” Haley stressed. “They get that we’re getting our strength back, that we’re getting our voice back and that we’re starting to lead again, and, honestly, at the United Nations, that’s the No. 1 comment I get is that they’re just so happy to see the United States lead again.”