(Eds: Repeating after rephrasing intro)By Lalit K JhaWashington, Jan 11 (PTI) Working with countries likeIndia, Russia and China is a "very good thing", US PresidentDonald Trump said today, defending his efforts to improve tieswith Moscow. Trump said he was for strongest military, massive oil andgas and a lot of energy. "Putin (Russian President VladimirPutin) can't love that," he added.
"Working with countries, whether it's Russia or China orIndia, or any of the countries that surround this world andencompass this world, is a very good thing. That's not a badthing," he told reporters at a joint White House newsconference with Norwegian Prime Minister Erna Solberg.
Trump said it was "very much better" having to do withNorth Korea where the US currently has a problem.
"That should have never been my problem. It should havebeen a problem solved many years ago when it was much lessdangerous. But it was given to him, along with a big mess ofother things," he noted.
He blamed former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, hispresidential rival in 2016 elections, saying she "was not wasnot for a strong military".
"Hillary, my opponent, was for windmills, and she was forother types of energy that don't have the same capacities atthis moment certainly," he said.
Trump said it was a "lot better" to work with othercountries.
"We're working with China on North Korea. We're workingwith various other countries, and I think we're doing verywell. We had a great talk, as you know and as you reported.
"We had a great talk this morning with President Moon (ofSouth Korea), and I think that a lot of good things arehappening. We're going to see what happens," the US presidentsaid.
Solberg said Norway has a "very good" relationship withRussia.
"As a neighbouring country we do day-to-day work onthings that we have to solve for the people and the economicactivity that is in that area, which is a fragile area for thewhole world," she said.
Norway share border with Russia.
Responding to a question on allegations of Russianinterference in elections in European countries, Solberg saidher government has found no such evidence in Norway.
"I think that it's up to every political system andcountries to scrutinise and discuss their own political agendain their countries. And I respect that very much and that thisis an issue for American politics," she said. PTI LKJ AQSUZM.
This is unedited, unformatted feed from the Press Trust of India wire.