Watch CBS News

Trump lights up Twitter with thoughts about Vladimir Putin, Kim Jong Un

Trump believes Putin
Trump believes Putin's denials of election meddling 02:35

President Trump fired off a series of unfettered tweets Saturday -- calling out "the haters and fools" -- and addressed his relationships with foreign leaders who often share tense relationships with the U.S. One tweet in particular took issue with North Korea leader Kim Jong Un where Mr. Trump felt insulted for being called "old" and in return called the dictator "short and fat."

The bulk of the posts were about Russia and Vladimir Putin, who the president briefly met on the sidelines at the APEC Summit in Vietnam. There, Mr. Trump reportedly questioned Putin several times about Russian meddling in the 2016 election, an allegation Putin denied, which Mr. Trump said he believed.

Mr. Trump's Russia tweets expressed hope for better relations with Russia. The tweets also were aimed to discredit the worthiness of investigations and continuous reporting looking into the extent of Russia's interference and whether Mr. Trump officials had any role to play.

Still on Russia, Trump proceeded to toss former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and President Obama into the mix, declaring that his predecessor had "zero chemistry with Putin."

On China and North Korea, Mr. Trump voiced optimism for progress in the region, claiming Chinese President Xi Jinping is now willing -- after meeting with him -- to apply stronger pressure on the reclusive dictatorship to help deter nuclear proliferation

Finally, in one of the more bizarre tweets of the bunch, the president called North Korean leader Kim Jong Un out by name, claiming that Un had inflated already-existing criticisms of Mr. Trump by calling him "old." Mr. Trump then expressed an openness to maybe one day become friends with the dictator.

The president's current stop along his nearly-two-week trip to Asia is in Hanoi, Vietnam, where he met with President Quang for a joint press conference. After that, he will wrap up his historic trip in the Philippines.

View CBS News In
CBS News App Open
Chrome Safari Continue
Be the first to know
Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting.