President Donald Trump has been criticized at times for a foreign policy stance toward Russia that many observers have characterized as relatively soft compared with his posturing elsewhere around the globe. | Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images Trump: Our relationship with Russia is 'worse now than it has ever been'

The U.S. relationship with Russia has dipped to its lowest level ever, President Donald Trump said Wednesday, suggesting that the Kremlin could reap the benefits of an economic boost if it were to agree to “stop the arms race.”

“Our relationship with Russia is worse now than it has ever been, and that includes the Cold War. There is no reason for this,” Trump wrote on Twitter. “Russia needs us to help with their economy, something that would be very easy to do, and we need all nations to work together. Stop the arms race?”


Later Wednesday morning, the president blamed the poor relationship between the two countries on the ongoing investigation by special counsel Robert Mueller into possible collusion between Trump's 2016 campaign and Russia.

“Much of the bad blood with Russia is caused by the Fake & Corrupt Russia Investigation, headed up by the all Democrat loyalists, or people that worked for Obama. Mueller is most conflicted of all (except Rosenstein who signed FISA & Comey letter). No Collusion, so they go crazy!” he tweeted.

The president’s lamentation about the state of U.S.-Russian affairs came minutes after he delivered an online warning to Russia that he intended to launch a retaliatory missile strike against Syria, a Russian ally, despite a warning from the Kremlin that Russia would shoot down any American missiles and attack their launch sites.

“Russia vows to shoot down any and all missiles fired at Syria. Get ready Russia, because they will be coming, nice and new and ‘smart!’” Trump wrote on Twitter Wednesday morning. “You shouldn’t be partners with a Gas Killing Animal who kills his people and enjoys it!”

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Trump has been criticized at times for a foreign policy stance toward Russia that many observers have characterized as relatively soft compared with his posturing elsewhere around the globe. Trump has expressed hope for a better relationship with Russia and was for months reluctant to acknowledge that the Kremlin had conducted a campaign to interfere in the 2016 presidential election.

But the Trump administration has insisted that it has been tougher on Russia than its predecessors, pointing to the imposition of sanctions and an uptick in military spending. The Trump administration has also ordered the closing of two Russian consulates on the West Coast and expelled dozens of Russian diplomats.

Trump’s call to “stop the arms race” seemed a reference to Russian President Vladimir Putin’s announcement last month that his nation was in possession of nuclear weapons capable of evading any defense system. “Efforts to contain Russia have failed, face it,” he said, warning that his nation had a hypersonic weapons that “heads for its target like a meteorite.”