U.K. Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson moved to defend Donald Trump’s dealings with Vladimir Putin, saying that while it was important to “engage” with Russia, the U.S. had been “resolute” about sanctions. Trump’s relationship with Putin has been the subject of intense scrutiny and suspicion since before he took office. The House of Representatives voted by 419-3 on Tuesday for a bill that would let Congress block any effort by Trump to unilaterally weaken sanctions imposed under Barack Obama’s administration for Russian meddling in the 2016 presidential election and its support for separatists in Ukraine. But Johnson, speaking in Sydney on a visit to Australia, said criticisms of the White House didn’t reflect the reality of its behavior. “The Americans have been resolute in maintaining sanctions in respect of what Russia did in Ukraine,” he said. “Perhaps more interestingly, when you look at what the Americans did in the Syria crisis, they’ve been more hardline against the Russians than Obama was.” Johnson said it was “fitting and right” that the U.S. President had “some kind of relationship” with his Russian counterpart. “We’ve got to engage with Russia as well as being vigilant and as well as deterring them,” he said. While Trump has been treated with wariness by some world leaders, the U.K. government has been keen to get close to him, with Prime Minister Theresa May visiting the White House a week after he took office. In return, the president has repeatedly said he wants a free trade deal with the U.K. after Britain leaves the European Union. While he’s been extended an invitation by the Queen to visit, he’s yet to make the trip amid constant speculation it’s on hold because of the potential protests that would await him.