Section: US & Canada
Trump State pick irks Beijing, muddles policy on S China Sea
WASHINGTON — Donald Trump’s pick to lead the State Department has stoked confusion over the U.S.’s South China Sea policy by appearing to advocate a blockade of Chinese man-made islands. A person familiar with deliberations inside the Trump transition team was aware of no such planning, raising the likelihood that Rex Tillerson...
A Sanctions Skeptic for State?
Rex Tillerson, Donald Trump’s choice to serve as secretary of state, fielded roughly nine hours of questions before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on Tuesday. Among other things, he was asked for his views on the role of economic sanctions in foreign policy, whether fossil fuels contribute to climate change, and how a Trump...
The Mattis confirmation hearing is happening in an alternate world where Trump lost
Early in Thursday’s Senate confirmation hearings for Gen. James Mattis, Trump’s pick for secretary of defense, Sen. Jack Reed asked something that, for most Trump nominees, would be a tough question: What do you think about working with Russia to solve problems? Mattis’s answer was blunt, and very un-Trumplike. “I’m all...
Biden accuses Trump of playing “into the Russian narrative”
Vice President Joe Biden on Thursday played down explosive allegations that Russia has compromising information on President-elect Donald Trump, saying such claims are “unsubstantiated,” but he also warned that Trump’s constant statements casting doubt on U.S. intelligence “play into the Russian narrative” of a weakened America that allies...
Ukraine interfered with 2016 election to help Hillary – coordinated with DNC operative
Point out the inarguable fact that Hillary Clinton was a terrible candidate, and they respond “Russians.” Remind them of her supreme arrogance and overconfidence, and they respond “Russians.” …read more Source: Canada Free...
U.S. Military Convoy Arrives In Poland, Drawing Local Cheers, Russia Ire
U.S. soldiers and equipment arrived in Poland on January 12, greeted by many in Eastern Europe as a boost to security but viewed by Moscow as a “threat” on its doorstep. …read more Source: Radio Free Europe / Radio...
BREMMER: Putin ‘certainly would angle for Trump backing off Ukraine,’ as explosive document suggested
“Trump, as president-elect, has already made a number of Ukraine statements that adhere extremely closely with the official Russian line.” …read more Source: Business...
Elation Over Trump Melts Away As Russia Reacts To ‘Hawkish’ Tillerson
Russian politicians and pundits ranged from upbeat to dismayed as they reacted to U.S. secretary of state nominee Rex Tillerson’s Senate confirmation hearing. …read more Source: Radio Free Europe / Radio...
Tillerson says U.S. can ‘define a different relationship’ with Russia
STEVE INSKEEP: The president-elect, as we have heard, took some questions about his relationship with Russia. And many more questions today went to his choice for secretary of state. Margaret Warner has been watching the Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing. MARGARET WARNER: Rex Tillerson was nearly obscured by the mob of cameras as he...
Trump’s Pentagon pick: Putin trying to ‘break’ NATO
WASHINGTON — Retired Gen. James Mattis, poised to become the first career military officer in charge of the Pentagon since the 1950s, said Thursday he believes Russian President Vladimir Putin is trying to “break” the NATO alliance that has anchored American and European security for more than half a century. Under questioning at his...
