TASS – July 22, 2018: The article highlights that US President Donald Trump’s plans to improve relations with Russia are not shared by the US elite and his authority is being hampered, according to Konstantin Kosachev, chairman of the Russian Federation Council’s (upper house of parliament) International Affairs Committee.
“I suppose that Mr. Trump was quite sincere in Helsinki when announcing his intentions to normalize relations with Russia and to advance them. It is another matter that his intentions are not shared by the majority of the US elite,” Kosachev said to TASS.
The Russian lawmaker pointed out that President Trump was “under the most intense pressure” and his powers “are deliberately being restricted.”
Kosachev admitted that “it is practically impossible to predict how US policy towards Russia will transform.”
But that nevertheless, “Russia’s policy toward the United States is not going to change. Russia is ready for cooperation with the US” on any relevant international issue, he concluded.
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US ambassador to Russia explains why he did not resign after Helsinki summit
TASS – July 23, 2018: The article highlights that the US Ambassador to Russia Jon Huntsman has refused to heed the advice of an American journalist to tender his resignation in the wake of the Russian-US summit in Helsinki. Huntsman explained to the Salt Lake Tribune press that he relied on the opinion of his fellow diplomats advising him against resigning his diplomatic post.
“I have taken an unscientific survey among my colleagues, about whether I should resign. The laughter told me everything I needed to know,” the ambassador wrote. He also referred to the opinion of his sons, active-duty naval officers. “Their words when asked if I should resign are unprintable,” he noted.
The diplomat invited Salt Lake Tribune columnist Robert Gehrke to visit Moscow and get acquainted with the US Embassy staff. “Their focus is on the work that needs to be done to stabilize the most dangerous relationship in the world, one that encompasses nuclear weapons, fighting terrorism, stopping bloodshed in Ukraine, and seeking a settlement of the seemingly intractable Syrian crisis.
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CrossTalk on Russophobia: Denying Detente
RT – July 22, 2018: U.S. president Donald Trump has repeatedly said he wants better relations with Russia. He did finally have his long sought summit with Vladimir Putin. Both presidents called it a success. The American political class and corporate media call the Helsinki summit a failure and Trump even worse. Are the United States and Russia destined to be enemies forever?
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