Kremlin blames Biden admin for 'atmosphere' that led to Trump assassination attempt
The Kremlin accused the Biden administration of creating the environment that led to the assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump, Reuters reported Sunday.
Trump was shot at during a campaign rally in Pennsylvania Saturday, leaving two people, including the shooter, dead and two people critically injured. Trump was hit in the ear by a bullet but was otherwise unharmed.
Thomas Matthew Crooks, 20. was identified by the Federal Bureau of Investigation as the shooter and an investigation into his motives is ongoing.
"We do not believe that the attempt to eliminate and assassinate Trump was organized by the current authorities," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters. "But the atmosphere around candidate Trump ... provoked what America is confronting today."
The relationship between the U.S. and Russia has grown fraught in the wake of Russia's invasion of Ukraine. Trump has repeatedly called for an end to the war and has shown a willingness to weaken American ties with NATO.
Peskov's comments mirrored Republican talking points placing blame on Biden for the assassination attempt.
"After numerous attempts to remove candidate Trump from the political arena - using first legal tools, the courts, prosecutors, attempts to politically discredit and compromise the candidate - it was obvious to all outside observers that his life was in danger," Peskov said.
Other world leaders react to Trump assassination attempt
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was one of the first to respond. He said he and his wife were praying for former President Donald Trump.
"Sara and I were shocked by the apparent attack on President Trump," he said in a post on X, formerly Twitter. "We pray for his safety and speedy recovery."
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán was also quick to offer his support to the former president, who he met with only a few days prior at Trump's Mar-a-Lago residence in Florida.
"My thoughts and prayers are with President @realDonaldTrump in these dark hours," Orbán wrote in a post.
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer condemned all forms of political violence following the shooting.
Starmer, in a post on X, said he was "appalled" by the assassination attempt and that he sends the former president and his family his "best wishes."
"Political violence in any form has no place in our societies and my thoughts are with all the victims of this attack," Starmer said.
Trudeau said he was "sickened" by the shooting.
"It cannot be overstated — political violence is never acceptable," Trudeau said in a social media post. "My thoughts are with former President Trump, those at the event, and all Americans."
Chilean President Gabriel Boric said violence is a threat to democracy in his response on X.
"From Chile, I express our unqualified condemnation of what happened today in the United States," Boric wrote in Spanish. "We hope for the speedy recovery of former President Donald Trump, the facts are clarified and justice is served."