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U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo says any criticism that the U.S. isn't tough enough on Russia is "crazy talk."
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President Donald Trump's administration has "put real money into our Defense Department," Pompeo says, adding that "Vladimir Putin can't possibly think that's a good thing for him."
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Still, the secretary of state stressed that he feels a responsibility to work with the Russians whenever possible.
Anyone suggesting that President Donald Trump is not tough enough on Russia is talking crazy, according to America's top diplomat.
U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo told CNBC's Hadley Gamble on Saturday that such criticism — including from members of the previous administration — fails to recognize what Trump's team has done, or the missteps of past presidents.
"Boy, that's crazy talk. That's absolutely crazy talk. And I've heard it — I've heard it from the previous administration. They say, 'Oh, we're not tough on Russia.' I only wish they would have stopped the election interference," Pompeo said, referring to Kremlin meddling in the 2016 U.S. elections.
"I only wish they would have put global Magnitsky on some of the bad actors in Russia in the way this administration" has, he said. "I only wish they hadn't gutted the defense budget to the great benefit of Vladimir Putin ."
The Magnitsky Act is an Obama-era law that lets the United States punish individual human rights offenders.
Military spending not a 'good thing' for Russia
Trump's administration has "put real money into our Defense Department," Pompeo said, characterizing the American military build up as inherently problematic for Russia.
"Vladimir Putin can't possibly think that's a good thing for him," he said.
Notably, Trump has both sought to increase the U.S. military budget as well as suggested he would like to work with the Russian president to cut down on the "crazy" arms race.
President Donald Trump tweet: I am certain that, at some time in the future, President Xi and I, together with President Putin of Russia, will start talking about a meaningful halt to what has become a major and uncontrollable Arms Race. The U.S. spent 716 Billion Dollars this year. Crazy!
Still, Pompeo said his boss has been as tough as any president on Russia.
"The actions that this administration takes I would put up against any in terms of our seriousness in pushing back on Russia and raising costs for them," the secretary of state said.