WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States is preparing new sanctions on Russia over its continued support of Syrian President Bashar-al Assad, the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, Nikki Haley, said Sunday.
Today:
President Trump on Monday put the brakes on a preliminary plan to impose additional economic sanctions on Russia, walking back a Sunday announcement by U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley that the Kremlin had swiftly denounced as “international economic raiding.”
The sanctions were against Russian-controlled companies suspected of supplying Syrian President Bashar-al Assad with the “equipment" for the chemical weapons he used to poison Syrian children last week.
But it looks like someone got a phone call last night.
At some point after Haley’s remarks, Trump hurriedly advised his Russian masters through their embassy that, but of course, it was all a misunderstanding...no hard feelings, right?
He even advised them apparently before anyone in the U.S. press was informed, so concerned he was about offending the Russians:
Sometime after Haley’s comments on CBS, the Trump administration notified the Russian Embassy in Washington that the sanctions were not in fact coming, a Russian Foreign Ministry official said Monday.
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Administration officials said Monday it was unlikely Trump would approve any additional sanctions without another triggering event by Russia, describing the strategy as being in a holding pattern.
So why did we launch that missile attack again?
Bet Nikki Haley feels like an idiot, but she shouldn’t. Her Boss clearly has to answer to a higher power.