In an extraordinary embrace of a longtime US enemy, President Donald Trump on Monday openly questioned his own intelligence agencies' firm finding that Russia meddled in the 2016 US election to his benefit, seeming to accept Russian President Vladimir Putin's insistence that Moscow's hands were clean, reports Khaleej Times. 

The reaction back home was immediate and visceral, among fellow Republicans as well as usual Trump critics. "Shameful," ''disgraceful," ''weak," were a few of the comments. Makes the US "look like a pushover," said GOP Sen. Bob Corker of Tennessee, Khaleej Times reported.

Trump's meeting with Putin in Helsinki was his first time sharing the international stage with a man he has described as an important US competitor – but whom he has also praised a strong, effective leader. 

His remarks, siding with a foe on foreign soil over his own government, was a stark illustration of Trump's willingness to upend decades of US foreign policy and rattle Western allies in service of his political concerns. A wary and robust stance toward Russia has been a bedrock of his party's world view. But Trump made clear he feels that any firm acknowledgement of Russia's involvement would undermine the legitimacy of his election, reports Khaleej Times.