The Kremlin says Trump sent Putin COVID tests during the pandemic, but denies subsequent calls

Trump sent COVID tests to Putin at the height of the pandemic, according to Bob Woodward’s forthcoming book.

The Kremlin seemingly confirmed reports that then-President Donald Trump sent COVID tests to Russian President Vladimir Putin in early 2020, for Putin’s own personal use.

According to several reports, Dmitry Peskov, the Kremlin’s spokesperson, said on Wednesday that the tests had been sent, but added that: “We also sent equipment at the beginning of the pandemic.”

Journalist Bob Woodward made the revelations in his forthcoming book “War,” excerpts of which were published by CNN and The Washington Post on Tuesday.

“Please don’t tell anybody you sent these to me,” Putin told Trump, according to the CNN excerpt, adding “I don’t want you to tell anybody because people will get mad at you, not me. They don’t care about me.”

The book also claims that Trump may have had up to seven phone calls with Putin since leaving office in 2021, citing a Trump aide.

However, Peskov denied this. “About the phone calls—it’s not true,” he said, according to TIME.

Trump campaign spokesman Steven Cheung vigorously denied the book’s claims in a statement to B-17 on Tuesday.

“None of these made-up stories by Bob Woodward are true and are the work of a truly demented and deranged man who suffers from a debilitating case of Trump Derangement Syndrome,” Cheung said.