Tag: Vladimir Putin

Commerce Secretary’s Offshore Ties to Putin ‘Cronies’

The following article by Mike McIntire, Sasha Chavkin and Martha M. Hamilton was posted on the New York Times website November 5, 2017:

Wilbur Ross, the commerce secretary, retained investments in a shipping firm with business ties to Russian President Vladimir V. Putin’s inner circle.

A Navigator ship chartered to Sibur, a Russian energy company whose owners include President Vladimir V. Putin’s son-in-law. The United States commerce secretary, Wilbur L. Ross Jr., retained an investment in Navigator after taking office. Credit Ola Westerberg and Adam Ihse, TT News Agency

After becoming commerce secretary, Wilbur L. Ross Jr. retained investments in a shipping firm he once controlled that has significant business ties to a Russian oligarch subject to American sanctions and President Vladimir V. Putin’s son-in-law, according to newly disclosed documents.

The shipper, Navigator Holdings, earns millions of dollars a year transporting gas for one of its top clients, a giant Russian energy company called Sibur, whose owners include the oligarch and Mr. Putin’s family member. Despite selling off numerous other holdings to join the Trump administration and spearhead its “America first” trade policy, Mr. Ross kept an investment in Navigator, which increased its business dealings with Sibur even as the West sought to punish Russia’s energy sector over Mr. Putin’s incursions into Ukraine. Continue reading “Commerce Secretary’s Offshore Ties to Putin ‘Cronies’”

Top Trump Organization executive asked Putin aide for help on business deal

The following article by Rosalind S. Helderman, Carol D. Leonnig and Tom Hamburger was posted on the Washington Post website August 28, 2017:

The Washington Post’s Carol Leonnig and Tom Hamburger explain the Trump Organization’s efforts to build a Trump Tower in Moscow. (Jenny Starrs, Meg Kelly/The Washington Post)

A top executive from Donald Trump’s real estate company emailed Russian President Vladi­mir Putin’s personal spokesman during the U.S. presidential campaign last year to ask for help advancing a stalled Trump Tower development project in Moscow, according to documents submitted to Congress on Monday.

The request came in a mid-January 2016 email from Michael Cohen, one of Trump’s closest business advisers, who asked longtime Putin lieutenant Dmitry Peskov for assistance in reviving a deal that Cohen suggested was languishing. Continue reading “Top Trump Organization executive asked Putin aide for help on business deal”

Trump Praises Putin Instead of Critiquing Cuts to U.S. Embassy Staff

The following article by Peter Baker was posted on the New York Times website August 10, 2017:

BRIDGEWATER, N.J. — President Trump offered gratitude rather than outrage on Thursday for Russia’s decision to force the United States Embassy in Moscow to slash its personnel by 755 people, despite bipartisan condemnation from other American leaders who protested the Cold War-style move.

President Vladimir V. Putin last month ordered the seizure of two American diplomatic properties and directed the American Embassy staff in Russia be cut by more than half in retaliation for sanctions imposed by Congress because of Russia’s meddling in last year’s presidential election in the United States. Continue reading “Trump Praises Putin Instead of Critiquing Cuts to U.S. Embassy Staff”

The Gripping Story Behind the Case for Trump-Putin Collusion

The following article by Jefferson Morley was posted on the AlterNet website August 1, 2017:

Bill Browder’s explosive testimony provides compelling insight for the corrupt bargain at the heart of the Russia investigation.

The most important witness so far in the investigation of President Trump’s ties to Russia didn’t even qualify for CNN.

While the Washington press corps and the rest of the world was distracted last week by the antics of the Mooch, Spicey, and the Donald, Bill Browder, an American-born British banker, was relegated to the side stage of C-SPAN3. For the Senate Judiciary Committee and the hard-core cable audience, Browder laid out what NPR called “a terrifying and complex picture of Putin’s Russia.”

A week later, Browder’s testimony remains the #1 article on TheAtlantic.com website, and for good reason. It is a gripping story that makes sense of the motive forces behind the collaboration of Trump and Putin in the 2016 election.

While Browder was only summoned to Capitol Hill to talk about the Foreign Agent Registration Act, his testimony about Putin’s government provided something that Washington and the public at large sorely need. Amid a welter of revelations and allegations, Browder provided a coherent narrative of how and why Putin sought Trump’s help. Continue reading “The Gripping Story Behind the Case for Trump-Putin Collusion”

Justice Dept. Nominee Says He Once Represented Russian Bank

The following article by Charlie Savage and Adam Goldman was posted on the New York Times website July 24, 2017:

An Alfa Bank branch in Moscow. President Trump’s nominee to run the Justice Department’s criminal division, Brian A. Benczkowski, has disclosed that he did work for the bank, whose owners have ties to Russian President Vladimir V. Putin. Credit Andrey Rudakov/Bloomberg

WASHINGTON — President Trump’s nominee to lead the Justice Department’s criminal division, Brian A. Benczkowski, has disclosed to Congress that he previously represented Alfa Bank, one of Russia’s largest financial institutions, whose owners have ties to President Vladimir V. Putin.

Mr. Trump nominated Mr. Benczkowski, a partner at the Kirkland & Ellis law firm and a former Bush administration Justice Department official, in June, and he is scheduled to appear before the Senate Judiciary Committee for a confirmation hearing on Tuesday.

Alfa Bank was at the center of scrutiny last year over potential ties between the Trump campaign and Russia after computer experts discovered data suggesting a stream of communications between a server linked to the Trump Organization and a server linked to the bank. Reports about the mysterious data transmissions fueled speculation about a back channel. Continue reading “Justice Dept. Nominee Says He Once Represented Russian Bank”

Trump had undisclosed hour-long meeting with Putin at G-20 summit

The following article by Karen DeYoung and Philip Rucker was posted on the Washington Post website July 18, 2017:

After his much-publicized two-and-a-quarter-hour meeting early this month with Russian President Vladi­mir Putin at the Group of 20 summit in Germany, President Trump chatted informally with the Russian leader for up to an additional hour later the same day.

The second meeting, undisclosed at the time, took place at a dinner for G-20 leaders, a senior administration official said. At some point during the meal, Trump left his own seat to occupy a chair next to Putin. Trump approached alone, and Putin was attended only by his official interpreter. Continue reading “Trump had undisclosed hour-long meeting with Putin at G-20 summit”

Trump had undisclosed hour-long meeting with Putin at G-20 summit

The following article by Karen DeYoung and Philip Rucker was posted on the Washington Post website July 18, 2017:

Credit:  Don Emmert/Agence France-Presse; Natalia Kolesnikova/Getty Images

After his much-publicized, two-and a quarter-hour meeting early this month with Russian President Vladi­mir Putin at the Group of 20 summit in Germany, President Trump met informally with the Russian leader for an additional hour later the same day.

The second meeting, unreported at the time, took place at a dinner for G-20 leaders, a senior administration official said. Halfway through the meal, Trump left his own seat to occupy a chair next to Putin. Trump was alone, and Putin was attended only by his official interpreter.

The encounter underscores the extent to which Trump was eager throughout the summit to cultivate a friendship with Putin. During last year’s campaign, Trump spoke admiringly of Putin and at times seemed captivated by him. Continue reading “Trump had undisclosed hour-long meeting with Putin at G-20 summit”

3 Reasons Trump is Wrong on Russia

The following article was posted on the TrumpAccountable.org website July 10, 2017:

Credit:  Don Emmert/Agence France-Presse; Natalia Kolesnikova/Getty Images

After President Trump met last week with Russian President Vladimir Putin, his apparent strategy for Russian engagement is coming into focus. While it’s baffling that Trump continues to hedge on Russia’s meddling in our election (despite unanimity among U.S. intelligence agencies), it’s equally confusing to understand why Trump sees a friend where everyone else sees a foe. Is Trump, like a brilliant entrepreneur, seeing opportunity where others see a dead end? Not likely. Here are three reasons Trump is wrong on Russia: Continue reading “3 Reasons Trump is Wrong on Russia”

Trump minimizes hacking allegations and seeks to ‘move forward’ with Russia

The following article by Philip Rucker was posted on the Washington Post website July 9, 2017:

President Trump on Sunday sought to move past allegations of Russian interference in the 2016 U.S. election, effectively dismissing the importance of the intelligence community’s definitive conclusion about a foreign adversary in pursuit of a collaborative partnership with Russian President Vladi­mir Putin.

Issuing his first public comments since sitting down with Putin in Germany, Trump vowed to “move forward in working constructively with Russia,” and said the two leaders were forming a cybersecurity unit to protect against the kinds of illegal intrusions that U.S. intelligence agencies say Putin ordered in the United States. Continue reading “Trump minimizes hacking allegations and seeks to ‘move forward’ with Russia”

Merkel appears to roll her eyes at Putin, and the Internet can’t get enough

NOTE:  President Donald Trump and Secretary of State Ralph Tillerson meet with Putin and his representative, and puts Russia’s interest ahead of that of the country President Trump was elected to represent (and whose constitution he swore to uphold) when, holding Russia accountable for meddling in this country’s election.  How do European leaders at the G-20 feel about Putin?  Check it out below: