
A former director of the CIA has accused Donald Trump of 'treason' after the President's summit with Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin in Helsinki.

Trump hailed 'direct, open and deeply productive talks' with Putin and accepted the Russian leader's insistence that Moscow had not interfered in the 2016 presidential election.

John Brennan, who led U.S. intelligence under Barack Obama, wrote on Twitter: 'Donald Trump's press conference performance in Helsinki rises to & exceeds the threshold of 'high crimes & misdemeanors'. It was nothing short of treasonous.'

He went on: 'Not only were Trump's comments imbecilic, he is wholly in the pocket of Putin. Republican Patriots: Where are you???'

Putin admitted he had hoped Trump would defeat Democratic rival Hillary Clinton, saying: 'I wanted him to win because he talked about normalising Russian-American relations.'

Trump backed up Putin's denials about meddling in 2016, when Brennan was CIA chief, saying he thought Russia had no reason to interfere in the election and contradicting his country's own FBI which believes Moscow was responsible for hacking during the campaign.

Vladimir Putin gives Donald Trump a football from the 2018 World Cup in Russia during their press conference in Helsinki

Trump, speaking after lengthy talks with the Russian leader at the Finnish Presidential Palace, said that 'we've all been foolish... we've both made mistakes' and that today's summit was just the beginning of a process of restoring ties

Putin gave Trump a ball from the 2018 World Cup. The President said his son would like the gift and threw it into the audience

Melania Trump holds the ball from the 2018 World Cup which Vladimir Putin gave the U.S. President at the press conference

US First Lady Melania Trump holds a ball which was gifted by Vladimir Putin to Donald Trump during the press conference

Who, me? Putin denied meddling in the 2016 presidential election but admitted he had hoped for a Trump victory

Presidents Trump and Putin hold the World Cup 2018 ball while Melania looks on after the Helsinki press conference

First Lady Melania Trump, Russia's President Vladimir Putin, and US President Donald Trump after the news conference

Vladimir Putin said this afternoon that his summit with US President Donald Trump has been 'very successful, useful'

Donald Trump has described historic talks with Vladimir Putin today as 'a very good start' and 'deeply productive' as the pair looked to rebuild ties between the US and Russia

Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin have sat down at the Finnish Presidential Palace ahead of 90-minute private talks aimed at rebuilding ties between US and Russia. Trump said he hoped for an 'extraordinary relationship' before shaking hands with the Russian leader (pictured)

Trump looked determinedly at the Russian President as the pair shook hands while Putin seemed to be clinging to his chair for support

Trump waves as he boards Air Force One on the way out of Helsinki following his meeting with Russian counterpart Putin

John Brennan's feud with Donald Trump John Brennan (pictured) has been one of the president's harshest critics. He was CIA chief during the 2016 election when the Obama administration was said to have known Russia was trying to interfere in the presidential contest. He has not held back in the harsh language he uses to describe the president. In June op-ed he wrote for The Washington Post, Brennan called Trump a 'snake-oil salesman' who has shown 'mean-spirited, malicious, and highly abnormal behavior.' Trump fired back. He attacked Brennan on Twitter after the op-ed appeared, quoting a former Secret Service agent who appeared on 'Fox & Friends' and called Brennan a liar. In March, after FBI agent Andrew McCabe was fired, Brennan tweeted to Trump: 'When the full extent of your venality, moral turpitude, and political corruption becomes known, you will take your rightful place as a disgraced demagogue in the dustbin of history. 'You may scapegoat Andy McCabe, but will not destroy America... America will triumph over you.' Advertisement

It comes as:

Trump winked at his Russian counterpart and said their countries' relations had 'never been worse' until the summit;

The President faced a backlash from fellow Republicans for accepting Putin's denials of interference in the 2016 election;

The Russian leader said Moscow could lead the interrogation of 12 hacking suspects and said US officials could ask to be present;

Putin said 'the ball is in your court' after giving Trump a football from the 2018 World Cup, which he threw to his wife Melania;

The Russian President denied the existence of a 'dossier' of compromising information on the US President;

Putin praised Trump for his efforts to secure peace in North Korea and said he had 'built dialogue' in a 'spirit of co-operation.

Brennan also criticised Trump for meeting Putin one-on-one, saying: 'What might he be hiding from Bolton, Pompeo, Kelly, & the American public?

'How will Putin use whatever Trump could be hiding to advantage Russia & hurt America? Trump's total lack of credibility renders spurious whatever explanation he gives.'

As well as Brennan's comments the President came under from Republican colleagues back home, where Senator Lindsey Graham described the meeting as a 'missed opportunity' and said it would send a message of U.S. weakness.

Senate colleague Jeff Flake said: 'I never thought I would see the day when our American President would stand on the stage with the Russian President and place blame on the United States for Russian aggression. This is shameful.'

Meanwhile the chamber's top Democrat Chuck Schumer accused President Donald Trump of a 'shameful performance'. He said it was 'thoughtless, dangerous and weak' for Trump to take Putin's word that Russia didn't meddle in the 2016 U.S. elections.

Trump said that 'we've all been foolish... we've both made mistakes' and that today's summit at the Finnish Presidential Palace was the beginning of a process of restoring ties.

'It is in the interest of both of our countries to continue our conversation and we have agreed to do so,' Trump said, having earlier shot a wink at the Kremlin strongman.

At the press conference the Russian leader once again denied his country interfered in the 2016 election, saying that Trump brought the matter up during their talks.

U.S. intelligence agencies believe the Kremlin acted to influence the vote and help Trump defeat Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton.

'I had to repeat that the Russian state never interfered, and does not plan to interfere in internal American electoral process,' Putin said, describing the claims as 'complete nonsense'.

What they said: Korea and peace in the Middle East Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin say they are exploring ways to protect Israel from conflict raging near its border in Syria. The two leaders did not commit to any specific actions, but both said that ensuring Israel's security was a priority. Israel is deeply concerned about Iran's presence in Syria, where Iranian forces and proxies have been fighting on behalf of the Syrian government, which is also supported by Russia. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has appealed to both Trump and Putin to eliminate the Iranian presence, which the Jewish state regards as an existential threat. Putin also said Russia and the U.S. have agreed to continue detailed discussions on arms control issues. He said Russia and the U.S. should discuss a possible extension of the 2010 New START nuclear arms reduction treaty and the implementation of the 1987 Intermediate Nuclear Forces Treaty. Putin added that other issues that Russia would like to discuss in the arms control sphere are the U.S. missile defense plans and the weaponization of space. He praised President Donald Trump for this efforts to resolve nuclear tensions with North Korea. The Russian President said: 'It's good that the gradual resolution of the problem of the Korean Peninsula has begun.' He continued, saying: 'In many respects, this became possible due to the fact that President Trump personally got involved in the resolution, building dialogue in the spirt of cooperation, not confrontation.' Trump met North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un in a historic summit in Singapore last month. Advertisement

What they said: Meddling in the 2016 U.S. election Trump said: 'The probe is a disaster for our country. I think it has kept us apart. There was no collusion at all..., so far that I know virtually nothing related to the campaign. It was a clean campaign. I beat Hillary Clinton easily. We won that race and it's a shame that there can be even a little bit of a cloud over it. 'This had a negative impact upon the relationship between the two biggest nuclear powers of the world. 'There was no collusion, I did not know the president (Putin), there was nobody to collude with ... We ran a brilliant campaign and that is why I am president.' 'I wonder why the FBI did not take the server. Where is the server? I want to know where is it, and what is the server saying? With that, all I can do is ask the question. 'Putin just said it's not Russia. I do not see any reason why it should be. It will go on for a while but it cannot be (resolved) unless we know what happened to the server. 'What happened to Hillary Clinton's emails - 33,000 just gone, gone.' 'I have great confidence in my intelligence people but Putin was extremely strong and confident in his denial.' 'He offered to have (our) people working on the case come and work with their (Russian) people on the case.' Putin said: 'We can suggest that the Mueller commission ... files us an official request to carry out interrogation of the people that they deem guilty. Representatives of our prosecutor's office and investigative authorities can carry out these interrogations and file the materials to the United States.' 'We can take another step: We can let U.S. official representatives, including Mueller, take part in these interrogations. We can raise the question of making these actions mutual. We can expect from the United States to question those representatives of special services that we suspect have carried out unlawful actions against Russia.' Advertisement

The summit in Helsinki consists of a one-on-one meeting and a larger working lunch, and will conclude with a joint news conference

The two leaders were seated together in a room adorned by American and Russian flags at the Finnish Presidential Palace, separated by a small table. The meeting started about 45 minutes late following Putin's delayed arrival to Finland

First Lady Melania Trump signs a book during talks between US President Donald Trump and Russian leader Vladimir Putin at the Presidential Palace in Helsinki

Russian President Vladimir Putin (pictured) said the Cold War is over and US and Russia need to solve problems together

Trump and Putin speak after meeting in Helsinki TRUMP'S OPENING REMARKS Talks covered 'a wide range of critical issues for both our countries. We had a productive dialogue that went very well'. 'I want to congratulate Russian President Putin for hosting one of the best ever World Cups. A great job.' '(I am) here today to begin a proud tradition of bold American diplomacy.' 'Diplomacy and engagement are preferable to conflict and hostility ... Not only good for the United States and Russia but good for the world.' 'If we are going to solve many of the problems facing our world, we will have to find ways to cooperate ... We have seen the consequences when diplomacy is left on the table.' 'Our relationship has never been worse than it is now, however that changed as of about four hours ago. 'Refusing to engage will not accomplish anything. I will not make decisions on foreign policy to appease the media or Democrats who want to do nothing but resist and obstruct. I would rather take political risks in pursuit of peace than risk peace in pursuit of politics. 'I will do what is best for the American people'. 'I addressed directly (the question of) Russian interference in our elections. We spent a great deal of time talking about it. He (Putin) feels strongly about the issue and has an interesting idea.' 'We discussed nuclear proliferation. After today I am sure we and they want to end that problem.' 'We also discussed the scourge of radical Islamic terrorism that Russia and the United States have suffered. 'We will maintain open communication between our security agencies to fight this global menace.' 'We also discussed at length the crisis in Syria. Co-operation between our countries has the potential to save hundreds of thousands of lives. '(I) made clear we will not allow Iran to benefit from our successful campaign against ISIS.' 'Our national security councils will meet to follow up all the agreements we made today. We have made the first steps towards a brighter future, grounded on cooperation and peace. 'President (Putin) I want to thank you for advancing open dialogue between Russia and the United States ... for the greater good of all. 'This was a very constructive day, the few hours we spent today. It is in the interest of both our countries to continue this conversation and we will meet again in the future.' PUTIN'S OPENING REMARKS 'Negotiations with Trump took place in an open and constructive atmosphere, I find them rather successful and useful.' 'It is obvious to everyone that international relations have lived through a difficult period ... The Cold War has ended a long time ago, the situation in the world has drastically changed. Russia and the United States are now facing totally different challenges.' Putin said the meeting marked the first steps to restore 'an acceptable level of trust and go back to previous level of interaction on all mutual interest issues'. 'As far as Syria is concerned the task of establishing peace and reconciliation in this country could be the first showcase example of successful joint work.' 'The United States could convince the Ukrainian leadership to fulfil the Minsk (peace) accords.' '(Trump) touched upon the theme of Russia's so-called meddling (in the 2016 U.S. election). I had to repeat what I've said before, that the Russian state has never interfered and has no intention to interfere.' 'We have offered to consider building the philosophy of bilateral relations for the long term.' 'We have good talks, we started to understand each other better.' 'The talks have reflected our mutual desire to improve the situation ... to restore trust,â Putin said, referring to global security, economic issues and ecological risks. 'We find it important to have dialogue on strategic stability.' 'We have everything necessary for efficient cooperation on Syria.' 'We as the largest gas state - and the United States is also such a country - could have worked on regulating the global market. We are not interested in prices dropping to low levels as producers could get hurt. We are also not interested in excessively high prices.' 'Concerning Nord Stream 2 I have reassured Trump that Russia is ready to preserve (gas) transit via Ukraine. We are ready to extend the contract that expires in 2019 if the dispute in Stockholm (court) is solved.' 'No one should trust anyone. He (Trump) is defending U.S. interests, I am defending interests of the Russian Federation. We have matching interests, we are looking for common points.' 'Concerning 12 alleged security officers, I know nothing about it, I need to figure out. Trump has put this question to me, we have discussed this.' Advertisement

Trump contradicted his own FBI and backed up his Russian counterpart's denials, saying: 'He just said it's not Russia. I will say this: I don't see any reason why it would be.'

Putin said Moscow and Washington could jointly conduct criminal investigations into Russian intelligence officials accused of hacking during the campaign.

He said: 'I had to repeat that the Russian state never interfered, and does not plan to interfere in internal American electoral process.'

In what Trump described as an 'incredible offer' Putin said Washington could use a 1999 agreement to request that Russian authorities interrogate the 12 suspects, adding that U.S. officials could ask to be present in such interrogations.

Putin also denied the existence of a supposed 'dossier' rumoured to have compromising material on Trump, while his U.S. counterpart said any such information would have come out a long time ago.

Trump had said in a CBS interview that he had given no thought to asking Putin to extradite the dozen Russian military intelligence officers indicted last week on charges related to the hacking of Democratic targets.

Extradition is unlikely as the U.S. does not have an extradition treaty with Moscow and can't force the Russians to hand over citizens. Russia's constitution also prohibits turning over citizens to foreign governments.

The Russian Foreign Ministry rejected last week's indictment as part of a 'shameful comedy' staged by those in the U.S. who try to prevent the normalization of Russia-U.S. ties, arguing that it doesn't contain evidence to back the accusations.

Earlier Trump said: 'Our relationship has never been worse than it is now, however that changed as of about four hours ago.'

In a more lighthearted moment, Putin gave Trump a ball from the 2018 World Cup, to symbolise North America hosting the tournament in 2026, saying: 'Now the ball is in your court'.

Trump, who praised Russia's hosting of the World Cup, said his son would like the gift and threw it into the audience, where his wife Melania caught it.

Putin said today that the US and Russia needed to solve problems together and that Moscow was ready for intelligence cooperation with America on terrorism and cyber threats.

Asked in a Fox News interview about the British government's assertion that Moscow was behind the Novichok attack on the former spy Sergei Skripal, Putin said London had not provided any evidence to back up their claim.

'We would like to get documentary evidence but nobody gives it to us,' Putin, speaking through a translator, told the US network.

Earlier, Trump said he hoped for an 'extraordinary relationship' with Moscow before leaning across to shake hands with the Kremlin strongman.

In his opening remarks, Trump praised Russia's hosting of the World Cup. A sombre-looking Putin, who struck a casual pose during Trump's remarks and slouched in his chair with his legs wide and eyes low, added: 'The time has come to talk in a substantive way.'

Trump looked determinedly at the Russian President as the pair shook hands while Putin seemed to be clinging to his chair for support.

The two leaders were seated together in a room adorned by American and Russian flags at the Finnish Presidential Palace, separated by a small table. The meeting started about 45 minutes late following Putin's delayed arrival to Finland.

In his opening remarks, Trump said: 'Most importantly we have a lot of good things to talk about ... we have discussions on everything from trade to military, to missiles, to nuclear, to China, we'll be talking a little bit about China – our mutual friend President Xi.

'I think we have great opportunities together as two countries that frankly we have not been getting along very well for the last number of years.

'I've been here not too long but it is getting close to two years, but I think we will end up having an extraordinary relationship. I've been saying, and I'm sure you've heard, over the years... that getting along with Russia is a good thing not a bad thing.

'I really think the world wants to see us get along. We are the two great nuclear powers. We have 90% of the nuclear – and that's not a good thing it's a bad thing. I think we can hopefully do something about that because it is not a positive force it is a negative force so we'll be talking about that among other things.

He concluded his remarks by saying that he was looking forward to their private talks.

'We all have a lot of questions and hopefully, we will come up with answers most importantly. It is great to be with you,' he said.

But, at least in his public remarks at the outset, he mentioned none of the issues that have lately brought US-Russian relations to the lowest point since the Cold War: Moscow's annexation of territory from Ukraine, its support for Syria's Bashar al-Assad, as well as Western accusations that it poisoned a spy in England and meddled in elections.

Putin, for his part, said he and Trump have maintained regular contact by phone and meeting at international events but 'the time has come to have a thorough discussion on various international problems and sensitive issues.' He added, speaking through a translator: 'There are quite a few of them for us to pay attention to.'

Monday's meeting was closely watched on both sides of the Atlantic, coming days after the U.S. Justice Department indicted 12 Russian military intelligence officers for their role in hacking Democratic entities during the 2016 presidential campaign.

It comes hours after Trump blamed the United States, and not Russian election meddling or its annexation of Crimea, for a low-point in U.S.-Russia relations.

The drama was playing out against a backdrop of fraying Western alliances, a new peak in the Russia investigation and fears that Moscow's aggression may go unchallenged.

'Our relationship with Russia has NEVER been worse,' Trump tweeted on Monday morning, blaming 'many years of US foolishness and stupidity and now, the Rigged Witch Hunt!'

The summit, which was being closely watched by rattled world capitals, was condemned in advance by members of Congress from both parties after the US indictment last week of 12 Russian military intelligence officers accused of hacking Democrats in the 2016 election to help Trump's presidential campaign.

Undeterred, the American president went face-to-face with Putin, the authoritarian leader for whom he has expressed admiration.

Trump was greeted at the palace by Finland's president. The summit was starting later than scheduled because Putin arrived in Helsinki late in another display of the Russian's leader famous lack of punctuality.

What they said: Putin on the 'dirty dossier' rumoured to have compromising information on Trump PUTIN: Putin denied what he called a 'rumour' that Russia possessed compromising material on Trump dating back to when he was a businessman and visited Moscow. 'I've heard about us allegedly collecting compromising material on him when he came to Moscow. When he came to Moscow I didn't even know he was there. It's hard to imagine more nonsense. Throw this rubbish out of your head. 'I treat President Trump with utmost respect but back then nobody informed me that he was in Moscow. I was an intelligence officer myself and know how these dossiers are put together.' TRUMP: 'If they (the Russian government) had anything (compromising material) on me it would have been out long ago ... It (the allegations) was a disgrace to the FBI, our country, and it was a total witch-hunt.' Advertisement

US President Donald Trump (left) and Russian President Vladimir Putin (second right), attend a working lunch during their meeting at the Presidential Palace in Helsinki

After more than two hours of one-on-one discussions with only translators present, Trump called the meeting 'a good start, a very good start for everybody'

The two will talk about 'everything from trade to military to missiles to China. We'll be talking a little bit about China. Our mutual friend president Xi,' Trump said

Monday's meeting is being closely watched on both sides of the Atlantic, coming days after the U.S. Justice Department indicted 12 Russian military intelligence officers for their role in hacking Democratic entities during the 2016 presidential campaign

Russian President Vladimir Putin told his US counterpart: 'The time has to come to talk in a substantive way'

Russia's Vladimir Putin told U.S. President Donald Trump at the start of their summit in Helsinki that it was time to talk about relations between Moscow and Washington

The Republican seemed to return the favour by waiting until Putin had arrived at the palace before leaving his hotel. Putin has been late for past meetings with the pope and British Queen, among many others.

Putin said he and Trump agreed to continue detailed discussions on arms control issues, saying Russia and the U.S. should discuss a possible extension of the 2010 New START nuclear arms reduction treaty and the implementation of the 1987 Intermediate Nuclear Forces Treaty.

Putin added that other issues that Russia would like to discuss in the arms control sphere are the U.S. missile defense plans and the weaponization of space.

Trump said he meant it as a compliment when he said Russian President Vladimir Putin was a 'competitor', noting that the U.S. and Russia compete in the energy market when asked about a gas pipeline between Russia and Germany. Trump criticized the pipeline during an earlier stop on his weeklong visit to Europe.

Trump and his aides had repeatedly tried to lower expectations about what the summit will achieve.

He told CBS News that he didn't 'expect anything' from Putin, while his national security adviser said the U.S. wasn't looking for any 'concrete deliverables.'

Trump told reporters during a breakfast Monday with Finland's president that he thought the summit would go 'fine.'

In his tweets, Trump continued to undermine the investigation and blamed his predecessor, Barack Obama, for failing to stop Russia's efforts to sway the 2016 election in Trump's favor.

He claimed Obama 'was informed by the FBI about Russian Meddling, he said it couldn't happen, was no big deal, & did NOTHING about it.'

The Obama administration did, in fact, take action, including confronting Putin in person as well as expelling nearly three dozen Russian diplomats the U.S. said were actually intelligence operatives and imposing new sanctions.

While Trump was eager for a made-for-TV moment that will dominate headlines like his sit-down with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un last month, the Kremlin's primary mission was simply to have the summit happen.

Trump reached out to shake Putin's hand, before the media were ushered out. The two men were to meet alone apart from interpreters before a working lunch with aides. Trump said they would talk about a range of subjects, listing trade, the military, nuclear weapons and China

Trump said getting along with Russia would be a 'good thing, not a bad thing', in opening remarks in front of media before the closed-door meeting

Trump's comments in full First of all Mr President I'd like to congratulate you on a really great World Cup. One of the best ever from what everybody tells me and also for your team, itself, doing so well. I watched quite a bit and in the United States we call it soccer and I watched quite a bit of it and I watched the entire final and the semi-finals and they were really spectacular games, but it was beautifully done so congratulations on that. Most importantly we have a lot of good things to talk about ... we have discussions on everything from trade to military, to missiles, to nuclear, to China, we'll be talking a little bit about China – our mutual friend President Xi. I think we have great opportunities together as two countries that frankly we have not been getting along very well for the last number of years. I've been here not too long but it is getting close to two years, but I think we will end up having an extraordinary relationship. I've been saying, and I'm sure you've heard, over the years ... that getting along with Russia is a good thing not a bad thing. I really think the world wants to see us get along. We are the two great nuclear powers. We have 90% of the nuclear – and that's not a good thing it's a bad thing. I think we can hopefully do something about that because it is not a positive force it is a negative force so we'll be talking about that among other things. And with that the world awaits and I look forward to our personal discussion which I think begins now and then we are going to meet our whole team. You have quite a few representatives as I do. We all have a lot of questions and hopefully, we will come up with answers most importantly. It is great to be with you. Thank you everybody. Advertisement

Putin hoped the meeting, mere hours after he presided over the World Cup final, would help him forge good personal ties with Trump and focus on areas where Moscow and Washington may be able to find common ground, such as Syria.

The two leaders first met one on one in the Finnish presidential palace's opulent Gothic Hall, then continued their discussions with an expanded group of aides and over lunch in the Hall of Mirrors, once the emperor's throne room.

Observers have raised concerns about the leaders being alone during their first meeting, but for a pair of interpreters, meaning there will be no corroborating witnesses to accurately represent what was said during the conversation.

Putin was not due to be shooting for official recognition of Russia's 2014 annexation of Crimea or easing of the crippling U.S. sanctions, aware that the U.S. Congress would never allow such action.

But he would welcome a symbolic end to Western protests over Crimea and Moscow's attempts to destabilise elections and traditional Western alliances and norms.

Trump unleashed his own attacks on those very institutions before arriving in Finland.

In an interview with CBS News that aired Sunday, Trump described the European Union, a bloc of nations that includes many of America's closest allies, as a 'foe.'

That attack on the alliance came on the heels of Trump's jarring appearance at a NATO summit in Brussels, where he harshly criticised traditional allies over 'delinquent' defense spending only to later confirm his commitment to the military alliance that has long been a bulwark against Russian aggression.

'NATO is now strong & rich!' Trump wrote in a celebratory tweet Monday morning. During his breakfast, he said NATO had 'never been more together' and said the summit had been 'a little bit tough at the beginning, but it turned out to be love.'

Prior to meeting Putin, who has cracked down on the free press, Trump unleashed fresh attacks on the news media, including from aboard Air Force One as it descended into Helsinki.

'Unfortunately, no matter how well I do at the Summit, if I was given the great city of Moscow as retribution for all of the sins and evils committed by Russia over the years, I would return to criticism that it wasn't good enough - that I should have gotten Saint Petersburg in addition!' Trump tweeted.

'Much of our news media is indeed the enemy of the people and all the Dems know how to do is resist and obstruct!'

'Russia has done nothing to deserve us meeting them in this way,' said Nina Jankowicz, a global fellow at the Wilson Center's Kennan Institute who specializes in Russia, Ukraine and disinformation. For Putin, she added, 'not only is this a PR coup no matter what happens, Trump could say nothing and it would help to legitimise his regime.'

U.S. President Donald Trump sat down with Vladimir Putin for a long-awaited summit on Monday saying he wanted good relations with Russia, after blaming Washington's own past 'foolishness and stupidity' for the countries' hostile ties

The Kremlin has played down expectations from the summit. It said beforehand that it did not expect much from the meeting but hoped it would be a 'first step' to resolving a crisis in ties

US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin are pictured ahead of their private talks in Helsinki today

The US and Russian leaders opened an historic summit in Helsinki on Monday with Donald Trump promising an 'extraordinary relationship' and Vladimir Putin saying it was high time to thrash out disputes around the world

Looking sombre, the two leaders exchanged a few opening remarks in front of the press at the start of their summit in Helsinki before shaking hands

Trump WINKS at Putin ahead of their meeting, as body language expert compares their entrance to prize fighters arriving for a title bout Donald Trump greeted Vladimir Putin with a wink when the pair met for their first one-on-one summit in Helsinki on Monday. The body language between the two men was frosty as they sat down for the cameras save for one moment where Trump turned to Putin and winked - only to be met with no response from the Russian strongman. Meanwhile a body language expert told Mail Online that two men appeared like prize-winning fighters read for a bout, showing 'no rapport, affection or even admiration' for each other. Judi James, an author and body language expert, said: 'This summit between two alpha leaders looked for all the world like a prize fight after both men arrived late. 'Both Trump and Putin chest-puffed as they walked in and both men pulled their jackets around in a classic 'prepping for a fight' gesture. Donald Trump winked at Vladimir Putin as the two men sat down in the ante-room of the Finnish Presidential Palace in Helsinki ahead of one-on-one talks 'Sitting in the ante-room there was no rapport, affection or even admiration between them, especially from Putin who failed to use anything other than darting eye contact and didn't smile even when Trump congratulated him about the World Cup.' Ms James also picked up on a moment when the two men began gesticulating about who should start speaking first, calling it an 'open power-skirmish'. While the moment was small, she believes it does not bode well for negotiations because it shows both men are combative an unwilling to step down. The mix-up over who should speak could have been used as a moment for humour between friends, she noted, but instead only deepened the sense of tension. She added: 'Trump wore a mouth-clamp expression and a scowl for much of the meeting and sat in his signature 'Trump slump' pose with his legs splayed and his fingers together in a downward steeple power pose. Putin remained stony-faced despite Trump's attempt at levity as a body language expert revealed there was 'no rapport or admiration' between the two men 'He began tapping his fingertips together as soon as the small pre-meeting conference began in a gesture of irritation and Putin replied in kind with several finger fiddle or scratching gestures to suggest matching irritation. 'Putin's partial arm splay and upright pose looked calm but at one point he wound his spare hand round the strut of his chair as though keen to make an exit.' That hand stayed gripping the side of the chair even as Putin went in for a handshake with Trump, perhaps providing stability during the shake. Trump is known to use handshaking as an opportunity to assert dominance, often putting people around by their arm or twisting his wrist during the shake. The body-language message could not have been more different from Trump's pre-summit posturing, in which he said he would like to get along better with Russia and blamed the current state of relations on US 'foolishness'. By Chris Pleasance for MailOnline Advertisement

Russian President Vladimir Putin could be seen smiling as he shook hands with Donald Trump today. First Lady Melania Trump (left) was also in Helsinki

Putin, for his part, said he and Trump have maintained regular contact by phone and meeting at international events but 'the time has come to have a thorough discussion on various international problems and sensitive issues.' He added, speaking through a translator: 'There are quite a few of them for us to pay attention to'

The summit, which was being closely monitored by rattled world capitals, was condemned in advance by members of Congress from both parties after the U.S. indictment last week of 12 Russian military intelligence officers accused of hacking Democrats in the 2016 election to help Trump's presidential campaign

President Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin opened their summit Monday with serious expression all around and the American president declaring that 'the world wants to see us get along.' Trump laid out a list of topics for discussion that notably did not include Russian meddling in the 2016 presidential election

Russia's President Vladimir Putin (centre), U.S. President Donald Trump (second left), First lady Melania Trump (left), Finland's President Sauli Niinisto (second right) and his wife Jenni Haukio pose for a picture during the meeting in Helsinki

The motorcade and US official state car also known as The Beast carrying US President Donald Trump passes the Finnish Parliament in Helsinki, Finland today