“There's a handful of other places in the world where we do have overlapping interests, although certainly not values,” said Secretary of State Mike Pompeo. | Pablo Martinez Monsivais/AP Photo Foreign Policy Pompeo rips Russia: 'They have not proven helpful'

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Saturday criticized Russia for its failure to cooperate with the U.S. on the world stage despite overtures by President Donald Trump to “develop a relationship” with the Kremlin.

“They have not proven helpful in the Ukraine, in Syria,” Pompeo said on NBC News’ “Meet the Press” in an interview set to air Sunday.


The State Department last week imposed sanctions on China’s Equipment Development Department for its purchase of Russian combat aircraft and surface-to-air missile equipment. On Saturday, Pompeo pointed to those economic penalties as evidence of the Trump administration’s efforts to “push back against Russia's malign activity around the world.”

He added: “The president's tried to develop a relationship and change that, but we've not been successful, at least to date.”

Trump's top diplomat also called Russia’s lack of cooperation with the U.S. “unfortunate,” as he had previously worked with President Vladimir Putin’s regime on “counterterrorism issues,” and the two nations were united in certain international objectives.

“There's a handful of other places in the world where we do have overlapping interests, although certainly not values,” Pompeo said. “They're a country that's very different from ours in that respect.”