Moscow — The Kremlin did not offer any official comment on Monday morning on the results of Robert Mueller’s inquiry into possible Trump administration collusion with Russia’s interference in the U.S. election process. A few Russian columnists posted comments within an hour of Attorney General Barr’s letter going public on Sunday night, but in general the reaction from Moscow was muted.
The Russian morning newspapers didn’t mention Mueller at all, though they may have gone to press before the story broke.
The most senior politician to speak out was Konstantin Kosachev, head of the Foreign Relations Committee in the Russian senate. In a Facebook post, he wrote that the Mueller probe’s conclusion, “unties President Trump’s hands to re-set relations with Russia.”
Some commentators on the Russian airwaves implied that, if President Trump did not collude with Russia, then Russia had done nothing wrong. Even Kosachev pointed out that this was a false conclusion.
“There is no reason for us to celebrate… here in Russia — the accusations against us still stand,” he said.
But, he added: “If there’s enough good will, there’s a lot we can fix. I’m not ruling out (Trump proposing) initiatives favorable towards Russia in the near future, because the Mueller report strengthens team Trump’s hand.”
Political analysts and players in the Russian capital were looking on Monday morning for signs that the end of the Muller investigation might mark a new pivot point in U.S.-Russia relations.
Alexei Pushkov, a Russian Senator, tweeted: “From the very start (the Mueller investigation) was biased, artificial, provocative, conspiratorial, designed-to-fuel-hatred towards Trump campaign. Its second goal was to demonize Russia and prevent any US moves towards better relations with Moscow.”
The Kremlin was expected to react later on Monday, most likely through Putin’s official spokesman Dmitri Peskov.
