The White House has said that President Donald Trump fully expects Russia to return control of Crimea to Ukraine.

White House spokesman Sean Spicer made the remarks at a contentious February 14 news conference that focused largely on the abrupt departure of Trump's national security adviser, Michael Flynn.

“President Trump has made it very clear that he expects the Russian government to de-escalate violence in the Ukraine and return Crimea,” Spicer said at a daily news briefing.  “At the same time, he fully expects to and wants to get along with Russia.”

Addressing the resignation of National Security Adviser Michael Flynn – hounded by the media over his contacts with Russian diplomats prior to Trump’s inauguration – Spicer pointed out that Russia “seized” Crimea under the Obama administration and that the Trump-appointed ambassador to the UN Nikki Haley has “strongly denounced the Russian occupation.”

Recall, the U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley said at the UN Security Council meeting on February 2 that “Crimea is a part of Ukraine. Our Crimea-related sanctions will remain in place until Russia returns control of the peninsula to Ukraine.” 

It is in the national and economic interest of the US to have a good relationship with Russia, Spicer explained, but said that Haley “speaks for the president” on the matter of Crimea.

Flynn’s resignation on Monday followed several weeks of media furor over his telephone conversation with the Russian ambassador to the US in December, after the outgoing Obama administration expelled 35 Russian diplomats and seized two properties.  Moscow chose not to respond in kind.

“There is nothing that General Flynn did that was a violation of any sort,” Spicer said, explaining that the adviser was asked to resign because of Trump’s “eroding trust” after Flynn’s accounts of the conversation to administration officials did not square with what was leaked to the media.

Some media reports say the new tone is a departure from opinions Trump expressed last year on the conflict between Ukraine and Russia.  In an interview with ABC in July, Trump did not back away from a suggestion he had made earlier to recognize Russia's claim on Crimea, CNN reported.  “I'm going to take a look at it,” Trump said.  “But you know, the people of Crimea, from what I've heard, would rather be with Russia than where they were.”