REPUBLICAN vice-presidential nominee Mike Pence has slammed Russia, calling Putin a "small and bullying leader" during a debate with his Democratic rival Tim Kaine.

The vice-presidential nominee's comments were stronger than those of his running mate Donald Trump, with the controversial businessman having previously said that Trump was a better leader than Barack Obama.

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Pence said: "The small and bullying leader of Russia is now dictating terms to the United States.

"The greatest nation on earth just withdraws from talks about a ceasefire, while Vladimir Putin puts a missile defense system in Syria."

But as Pence and Tim Kaine repeatedly butted heads throughout the debate, the main topic of conversation was the controversial could-be leader Donald Trump with Democratic contender Kaine arguing that Trump was a "fool" or "maniac" who could trigger a catastrophic event.

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Kaine said: "Ronald Reagan said something really interesting about nuclear proliferation back in the 1980s. He said the problem with nuclear proliferation is some fool or maniac could trigger some catastrophic event. And that’s who I believe Governor Pence’s running mate is – exactly who President Reagan warned us about."
But Pence was quick to criticise, saying: "Senator, that's pretty low even for you."

The pair had to be reminded multiple times by moderator Elaine Quijano to not speak over the top of each other.

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The debate did not go smoothly, with Mike Pence mistakenly kicking off the presidential debate by using the wrong name of the college hosting the event.

In the first few minutes of the debate, he said: "Thank you to Norwood University for their wonderful hospitality and the Commission on Presidential Debates.

"It is deeply humbling for me to be here."

The debate was actually held at Longwood University.

It is the first and only time that the vice presidential contenders would meet in a debate before the November 8 election.

Both men spent most of the debate attacking each other's running mates, with Kaine saying that Donald Trump had been running "a campaign that's been about one insult after the next", while Hillary Clinton's motto had been "stronger together".

Kaine particularly attacked Trump's refusal to release his tax records, a decision that breaks the practise of other presidential nominees in recent history.

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It was recently revealed that Trump  had reported a $916 million tax loss in 1995 - a move that potentially meant he could avoid paying federal taxes for 18 years.

But there were no knock-out punches in the 90 minute debate, with a CNN/ORC snap poll declaring Pence was the winner with 48 per cent support, compared to Kaine's 42 per cent.

The debate sets the stage for the second presidential debate between Clinton and Trump, which will be held on Sunday in St Louis.

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