Donald Trump's Washington meeting with Putin delayed until 2019

US president Donald Trump's proposed Washington meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin has been delayed until 2019.

US president Donald Trump and Russian president Vladimir Putin shake hands after a joint press conference at the Presidential Palace in Helsinki, Finland. Picture: Jussi Nukari/Lehtikuva via AP

National security adviser John Bolton, in a statement, citef special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election as the reason for the delay.

Mr Bolton says: “The president believes that the next bilateral meeting with President Putin should take place after the Russia witch hunt is over, so we’ve agreed that it will be after the first of the year.”

The White House said last week the US president had directed Mr Bolton to invite Mr Putin to Washington for a meeting in the fall.

This came amid the backlash over Mr Trump’s performance at a news conference with Mr Putin following their Helsinki summit.

Many members of Congress had objected to them meeting again in the fall.