2016 ELECTION/CAMPAIGN/INTELLIGENCE/RUSSIA/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “President Donald Trump’s campaign digital director, Brad Parscale, will be interviewed Tuesday [10-24-17] by the House Intelligence Committee, his first appearance before any of the panels examining the issue of Russian interference in the 2016 election. Mr. Parscale confirmed his scheduled appearance. The Senate committees also probing interference haven’t scheduled time […]
Category: Russia
10/22/2017
2016 ELECTION/INTELLIGENCE/RUSSIA/TRUMP FAMILY/JARED KUSHNER: “In a secured room in the basement of the Capitol in July, Jared Kushner, President Trump’s son-in-law and senior adviser, fielded question after question from members of the House Intelligence Committee. Though the allotted time for the grilling had expired, he offered to stick around as long as they wanted. But […]
10/20/2017
CAMPAIGN/INTELLIGENCE/LEGAL/RUSSIA/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “The Senate Intelligence Committee has indefinitely postponed a public hearing planned for next week with Michael Cohen, the longtime Trump attorney and 2016 campaign surrogate… Cohen had been slated to appear in a private session last month but the committee called it off abruptly after Cohen arrived, citing his decision to release […]
10/19/2017
CIA/INTELLIGENCE/MIKE POMPEO/NATIONAL SECURITY/RUSSIA: “CIA Director Mike Pompeo drew sharp criticism Thursday [10-19-17] after wrongly stating that the U.S. intelligence community had found that Russian meddling did not tilt the 2016 presidential election. Pompeo made the inaccurate claim at an event hosted by the Foundation for the Defense of Democracies, a conservative think tank close to […]
10/19/2017
2016 ELECTION/CYBERWAR/NIKKI HALEY/RUSSIA/UN: “U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley said Thursday that interference in U.S. elections by another nation ‘is warfare,’ telling an audience in New York that such meddling has become Russia’s go-to tactic… While President Donald Trump has questioned at times whether or not the Russian government was behind a campaign […]
10/19/2017
INTELLIGENCE/RUSSIA/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “Workers of firm involved with the discredited and Fake Dossier take the 5th. Who paid for it, Russia, the FBI or the Dems (or all)?” -Donald Trump, Twitter.com, October 19, 2017 06:56am […]
10/19/2017
FAKE NEWS/MEDIA/RUSSIA: “Uranium deal to Russia, with Clinton help and Obama Administration knowledge, is the biggest story that Fake Media doesn’t want to follow!” -Donald Trump, Twitter.com, October 19, 2017 06:17am […]
10/18/2017
2016 ELECTION/JEFF SESSIONS/RUSSIA: “Attorney General Jeff Sessions is set to appear before the Senate Judiciary Committee on Wednesday [10-18-17] morning, where he will likely face questions on contentious issues such as immigration, civil rights and his recusal from the investigation into Russia’s meddling in the 2016 election. Democrats said they plan to push Mr. Sessions […]
10/17/2017
FBI/ROBERT MUELER/RUSSIA/SEAN SPICER: “President Donald Trump’s former press secretary Sean Spicer met with special counsel Robert Mueller’s team on Monday [10-16-17] for an interview that lasted much of the day, according to multiple people familiar with the meeting. During his sitdown, Spicer was grilled about the firing of former FBI director James Comey and his […]
10/13/2017
2016 ELECTION/CYBERWAR/RUSSIA: “Twitter has deleted tweets and other user data of potentially irreplaceable value to investigators probing Russia’s suspected manipulation of the social media platform during the 2016 election, according to current and former government cybersecurity officials. Federal investigators now believe Twitter was one of Russia’s most potent weapons in its efforts to promote Donald […]
10/12/2017
2016 ELECTION/CYBERWAR/RUSSIA: “Facebook Inc. will publicly disclose the types of people targeted by Russian-backed ads during and after the 2016 presidential election, operating chief Sheryl Sandberg said. In an interview Thursday [10-12-17]with Axios, Ms. Sandberg acknowledged Facebook’s platform was manipulated in a way it shouldn’t have been during the election. She said the company was […]
10/11/2017
CYBERWAR/RUSSIA: “The Russian government used a popular antivirus software to secretly scan computers around the world for classified U.S. government documents and top-secret information, modifying the program to turn it into an espionage tool, according to current and former U.S. officials with knowledge of the matter. The software, made by the Moscow-based company Kaspersky Lab, […]
10/10/2017
INTELLIGENCE/LEGAL/POLITICS/RUSSIA/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “A congressional committee has issued subpoenas targeting a research firm that compiled a dossier of unverified and unflattering information about President Donald Trump. The subpoenas were recently issued by the House Intelligence Committee to employees at Fusion GPS, which performs research for political and corporate clients. During the 2016 presidential campaign, Fusion […]
10/10/2017
CARTER PAGE/LEGAL/RUSSIA/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “Carter Page, a former foreign policy adviser to the Trump campaign, informed the Senate Intelligence Committee on Tuesday [10-10-17] that he will not be cooperating with any requests to appear before the panel for its investigation into Russian meddling in the 2016 election and would plead the Fifth, according to a […]
10/9/2017
CYBERWAR/INTELLIGENCE/RUSSIA: “Google has found evidence that Russian agents bought ads on its wide-ranging networks in an effort to interfere with the 2016 presidential campaign. Using accounts believed to be connected to the Russian government, the agents purchased $4,700 worth of search ads and more traditional display ads, according to a person familiar with the company’s […]
10/9/2017
LEGAL/RUSSIA/TRUMP FAMILY/DONALD JR: “Newly disclosed emails shed light on the period leading up to a June 2016 meeting at Trump Tower between a Russian lawyer linked to the Kremlin and top campaign aides to President Donald Trump. The new information appears to bolster lawyer Natalia Veselnitskaya’s position that she wanted the meeting to argue her […]
10/9/2017
LEGAL/RUSSIA/TRUMP FAMILY/DONALD JR: “An attorney for the Russian billionaire who allegedly pushed for the June 2016 meeting between senior members of Trump’s team and a Russian lawyer says he has documents showing the meeting wasn’t really about dirt on Hillary Clinton. An email exchange and talking points provided to CNN are the latest indication of […]
10/9/2017
CHINA/FOREIGN POLICY/NORTH KOREA/RUSSIA/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “Russia and China called for restraint on North Korea on Monday [10-9-17] after U.S. President Donald Trump warned over the weekend that ‘only one thing will work’ in dealing with Pyongyang, hinting that military action was on his mind. When asked what Russia made of Trump’s comments, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry […]
10/9/2017
ARMY/CYBERWAR/MILITARY/RUSSIA: “The Army is preparing to unveil a new approach for fighting future wars that combines space, cyberspace and traditional combat, in preparation for conflicts short of all-out war that require attacks or counterstrikes in uncertain situations, officials said. A document on the new approach being released on Monday [10-9-17] also will caution that decisive […]
10/6/2017
CYBERWAR/NATIONAL SECURITY/RUSSIA: “Kaspersky Lab ZAO, the Russian firm behind the popular eponymous antivirus program, is facing scrutiny from U.S. lawmakers who are calling for hearings amid fresh accusations its software was exploited by Russian hackers as part of a massive data theft from the National Security Agency. In the 2015 incident, Russian hackers targeted an […]
10/6/2017
CYBERWAR/NATIONAL SECURITY/RUSSIA: “Russian software developer Kaspersky Lab said Friday [10-6-17] it had become a ‘pawn in a geopolitical conflict’ between Russia and the U.S., following the disclosure its software was used to help Russian intelligence steal secrets from the U.S. National Security Agency. The Wall Street Journal on Thursday reported the theft of highly classified […]
10/5/2017
CYBERWAR/INTELLIGENCE/RUSSIA: “In the latest case of an insider removing sensitive data from the nation’s largest intelligence agency, Russian hackers obtained classified documents that a National Security Agency employee had taken and stored on his home computer. Investigators believe the hackers may have penetrated the computer by exploiting Kaspersky Lab antivirus software, a Russian brand widely […]
10/4/2017
FOREIGN POLICY/RUSSIA/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia said on Wednesday [10-4-17] that relations with America had ‘become hostage to the internal political situation in the U.S.,’ but that his country had many friends in the United States who can help improve relations between the two nations when the political tensions in America […]
10/4/2017
2016 ELECTION/CYBERWAR/INTELLIGENCE/RUSSIA: “The leaders of the Senate Intelligence Committee on Wednesday [10-4-17] warned political candidates to expect Russian operatives to try to sow chaos and manipulate upcoming elections in November and in 2018. At a news conference, Senators Richard Burr, the committee’s chairman, and Mark Warner, its vice chairman, broadly endorsed the conclusions of American […]
10/4/2017
2016 ELECTION/CYBERWAR/INTELLIGENCE/RUSSIA/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “Senate Intelligence Chairman Richard Burr said Wednesday [10-4-17] the committee is continuing to investigate potential collusion between the Trump campaign and Russian agents meddling in the U.S. election. Despite the president’s dismissal of possible collusion between his campaign and Russian officials as ‘a hoax,’ Burr, R-N.C., and Vice Chairman Mark Warner, […]
10/2/2017
CYBERWAR/INTELLIGENCE/RUSSIA: “Facebook Inc. on Monday [10-2-17] said it estimates 10 million people saw ads it has discovered on its platform paid for by Russian entities, but warned that it may not have uncovered all malicious activity that attempted to interfere in the American political process. The revelation from Facebook quantifies for the first time the […]
10/2/2017
INTELLIGENCE/ROBERT MUELLER/RUSSIA: “Robert Mueller is rarely seen and almost never heard. He doesn’t frequent popular restaurants, appear on television or even issue statements. When he meets in person with President Donald Trump’s lawyers, he does not visit the White House where reporters might notice. He instead summons them to the conference rooms of his southwest […]
10/1/2017
CYBERWAR/FOREIGN POLICY/NORTH KOREA/RUSSIA: “North Korea has opened a second internet connection with the outside world, this time via Russia, a move which cyber security experts said could give Pyongyang greater capability to conduct cyber attacks. North Korea has been blamed by Western governments for several major cyber attacks in recent years, including against banks and […]
10/1/2017
MILITARY/RUSSIA: “A recent major exercise by the Russian military revealed significant strides in its ability to conduct the sort of complex, large-scale operations, using drones and other new technology, that would be part of any all-out war with the United States in Europe, according to American and allied officials. Preliminary Pentagon and NATO assessments of […]
9/28/2017
INTELLIGENCE/LEGAL/RUSSIA/TRUMP FAMILY/JARED KUSHNER: “In his closed interview with the staff of the Senate intelligence committee, White House senior adviser and presidential son-in-law Jared Kushner did not share the existence of his personal email account, which he has used for official business, CNN has learned. CNN has also learned that the chair and vice chair of […]
9/28/2017
2016 ELECTION/CYBERWAR/RUSSIA: “Twitter Inc. on Thursday [9-28-17] offered its first public information on Russian use of its platform during the U.S. presidential election, but its limited disclosure only fueled criticism from lawmakers who are pushing for greater transparency from internet companies over how their platforms are manipulated. In presentations to congressional investigators and a post […]
9/27/2017
DEFENSE/RUSSIA/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia presided over the destruction of his country’s last declared chemical weapons on Wednesday, describing the elimination as a ‘historic event’ and complaining that the United States has failed to purge its own chemical arsenal… In Washington, a State Department official said that the United States ‘fully […]
9/27/2017
CYBERWAR/LEGAL/RUSSIA: “Executives from Facebook, Alphabet Inc’s Google and Twitter have been asked to testify to the U.S. Congress in coming weeks as lawmakers probe Russia’s alleged interference in the 2016 U.S. election, committee sources said on Wednesday. A Senate aide said executives from the three firms had been asked by the Senate Intelligence Committee to […]
9/26/2017
2016 ELECTION/CYBERWAR/FAKE NEWS/MEDIA/RUSSIA: “Green Party presidential candidate Jill Stein was the beneficiary of at least one of the Russian-bought political ads on Facebook that federal government officials suspect were intended to influence the 2016 election. Other advertisements paid for by shadowy Russian buyers criticized Hillary Clinton and promoted Donald Trump. Some backed Bernie Sanders and […]
9/26/2017
LEGAL/ROBERT MUELLER/RUSSIA/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT/TRUMP PEOPLE: “Special Counsel Robert Mueller is set to begin his interviews of current and former White House officials this week as part of his probe into Russian interference in the 2016 U.S. election, a White House official said Tuesday [9-26-17]. Mr. Mueller told the White House earlier this month that he […]
9/26/2017
ROBERT MUELLER/RUSSIA/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “Republican and Democratic senators said Tuesday [9-26-17] they would remain vigilant to protect special counsel Robert Mueller from being fired, even as President Donald Trump has slightly lowered the temperature about his discontent over the Russia probe. Two bills introduced in August are designed to safeguard the independent prosecutor, whose investigation […]
9/26/2017
FOREIGN POLICY/MILITARY/RUSSIA/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “U.S. officials are preparing to announce restrictions to Russian military flights over American territory under the Treaty on Open Skies in the latest sign of strain in U.S.-Russia relations. The treaty, part of a suite of arms-control, transparency and confidence-building agreements that proliferated in the late stages of the Cold War, […]
9/25/2017
ROGER STONE/RUSSIA/TRUMP PEOPLE: “Roger J. Stone Jr., a self-proclaimed political ‘dirty trickster’ and an informal adviser to the president, will strongly deny to congressional investigators on Tuesday [9-26-17] that he worked with Russians to aid President Trump’s campaign… Mr. Stone is scheduled to be interviewed by the committee behind closed doors in its continuing investigation […]
9/25/2017
FOREIGN POLICY/MILITARY/RUSSIA/SYRIA/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov said on Monday that the ‘two-faced policy’ of the United States was to blame for the death of Russian Lieutenant-General Valery Asapov in Syria, the RIA news agency quoted him as saying. The Russian Defence Ministry said on Sunday that Asapov had been killed by […]
9/22/2017
FAKE NEWS/MEDIA/RUSSIA: “The greatest influence over our election was the Fake News Media ‘screaming’ for Crooked Hillary Clinton. Next, she was a bad candidate!” -Donald Trump, Twitter.com, September 22, 2017 06:26am […]
9/22/2017
FAKE NEWS/MEDIA/RUSSIA: “The Russia hoax continues, now it’s ads on Facebook. What about the totally biased and dishonest Media coverage in favor of Crooked Hillary?” -Donald Trump, Twitter.com, September 22, 2017 05:44am […]
9/21/2017
INTELLIGENCE/LEGAL/PAUL MANAFORT/RUSSIA: “U.S. authorities placed Paul Manafort under surveillance after he was ousted as Donald Trump’s campaign manager in the summer of 2016, according to U.S. officials with knowledge of the matter. The surveillance, which was part of a counterintelligence investigation into Russian interference with the presidential election, didn’t involve listening to Mr. Manafort’s phone […]
9/20/2017
MICHAEL FLYNN/ROBERT MUELLER/RUSSIA: “Special Counsel Robert Mueller is seeking to determine what White House officials knew about a federal investigation into former national security adviser Michael Flynn early this year. The move comes as Mr. Mueller’s team examines whether President Donald Trump or other administration officials sought to obstruct that probe, according to people familiar […]
9/20/2017
CYBERWAR/INTELLIGENCE/RUSSIA: “Senate Intelligence Chairman Richard Burr says he’s planning to hold a public hearing next month on Russian election interference through Facebook and other social media platforms. Earlier this month, Facebook disclosed it had sold about $100,000 in ads to Russian troll farms connected to about 470 inauthentic accounts. Facebook briefed the Senate and House […]
9/20/2017
ROBERT MUELLER/RUSSIA/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “Robert S. Mueller III, the special counsel, has asked the White House for documents about some of President Trump’s most scrutinized actions since taking office, including the firing of his national security adviser and F.B.I. director, according to White House officials. Mr. Mueller is also interested in an Oval Office meeting […]
9/19/2017
LEGAL/MICHAEL COHEN/RUSSIA/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “President Trump’s longtime lawyer, Michael D. Cohen, told Senate investigators on Tuesday [9-19-17] that the president’s critics were using rumors and innuendo about Russian interference in the election in an attempt to undercut Mr. Trump’s presidency. Their rush to presume guilt, Mr. Cohen said, had overtaken the facts, smeared supporters of […]
9/19/2017
LEGAL/MICHAEL COHEN/RUSSIA/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “Senate investigators called off an expected closed-door interview Tuesday [9-19-17] with Michael Cohen, saying they were upset that the longtime lawyer to President Donald Trump released a statement denying any role in Russian meddling in the 2016 election after the committee asked him not to comment publicly. The Senate Intelligence Committee […]
9/19/2017
AMBASSADOR/NOMINATIONS/RUSSIA/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “Former Utah Governor Jon Huntsman, President Donald Trump’s nominee to be ambassador to Russia, said on Tuesday [9-19-17] there was ‘no question’ Moscow meddled in the 2016 U.S. election, and pledged to bring up the matter with the Russian government… Many members of Congress, including several of Trump’s fellow Republicans, are concerned […]
9/18/2017
LEGAL/PAUL MANAFORT/ROBERT MUELLER/RUSSIA: “Paul J. Manafort was in bed early one morning in July when federal agents bearing a search warrant picked the lock on his front door and raided his Virginia home. They took binders stuffed with documents and copied his computer files, looking for evidence that Mr. Manafort, President Trump’s former campaign chairman, […]
9/18/2017
LEGAL/NIKKI HALEY/ROBERT MUELLER/RUSSIA/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “President Donald Trump has added another lawyer to his legal team as FBI special counsel Robert Mueller prepares to interview a slate of senior White House aides. Steven Groves, who until last month served as chief of staff to U.N. ambassador Nikki Haley, will serve as deputy to White House […]
9/17/2017
BUSINESS/INTELLIGENCE/RUSSIA: “Michael Cohen, one of President Donald Trump’s closest business advisers, said on Sunday [9-17-17] he would testify on Tuesday to the U.S. Senate Intelligence Committee, as the panel investigates alleged Russian interference in the 2016 U.S. election. The timing of Cohen’s testimony was first reported by NBC. Cohen confirmed that he would testify to […]
9/17/2017
CAMPAIGN/ETHICS/LEGAL/RUSSIA/TRUMP PEOPLE: “Some White House and Trump campaign officials caught up in investigations of Russia’s electoral meddling are struggling to pay their legal bills, prompting them to create legal defense funds, liquidate personal accounts and explore other sources of financing. Washington is one of the nation’s costliest legal jurisdictions, with many lawyers charging upward of […]
9/16/2017
MILITARY/RUSSIA/SYRIA/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “Russian military forces on Saturday [9-16-17] attacked a location in Syria where they knew troops from the U.S.-led coalition and allied Syrian rebels were operating, the U.S. military said. The strike injured several Syrian Democratic Forces troops but didn’t wound any members of the U.S.-led coalition, according to the statement from the […]
9/15/2017
LEGAL/PAUL MANAFORT/RUSSIA: “A spokesman for former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort, Jason Maloni, spent about two-and-a-half hours testifying Friday [9-15-17] before a federal grand jury probing potential collusion between the campaign and Russia. Maloni arrived at the courthouse just before 9 a.m. and disappeared behind the frosted glass doors of the grand jury suite on […]
9/15/2017
CYBERWAR/RUSSIA: “New scrutiny by Congress of Facebook Inc. over its acceptance of Russian ad buys in the 2016 campaign is just the latest in a string of political challenges facing technology firms, which long enjoyed a hands-off approach from Washington aimed at fostering their growth. It was already a tough year for Silicon Valley in […]
9/14/2017
RUSSIA/SYRIA/TERRORISM: “Islamic State militants stranded in the Syrian desert for two weeks have reached their destination in eastern Syria, opposition activists said, after the U.S.-led coalition heeded Russia’s request to cease airstrikes on the convoy’s route. The convoy of buses traveled across Syria as part of a controversial deal brokered in August by the Lebanese […]
9/13/2017
MILITARY/NATO/RUSSIA: “The country does not exist, so it has neither an army nor any real citizens, though it has acquired a feisty following of would-be patriots online. Starting on Thursday [9-14-17], however, the fictional state, Veishnoriya, a distillation of the Kremlin’s darkest fears about the West, becomes the target of the combined military might of […]
9/13/2017
CYBERWAR/DHS/RUSSIA: “In a move likely to escalate tensions between Washington and Moscow, the Department of Homeland Security has ordered all federal agencies to stop using software made by the Russian cybersecurity firm Kaspersky Lab, citing concerns that the Moscow-based firm’s software could give the Kremlin a foothold in the U.S. government. The directive gives federal […]
9/13/2017
HILLARY CLINTON/RUSSIA/TRUMP FAMILY/DONALD JR: “The scramble to obfuscate the true nature of Donald Trump Jr.’s meeting last summer with a Russian attorney with ties to the Kremlin is ‘ridiculous’ and ‘an absurd lie,’ former Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton said Wednesday [9-13-17] morning. Trump Jr. met last summer with a Russian attorney whom he had […]
9/12/2017
NATO/RUSSIA/TURKEY: “In the clearest sign of his pivot toward Russia and away from NATO and the West, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan announced on Tuesday [9-12-17] that Turkey had signed a deal to purchase a Russian surface-to-air missile system. The deal cements a recent rapprochement with Russia, despite differences over the war in Syria, and comes […]
9/12/2017
CYBERWAR/INTELLIGENCE/RUSSIA: “The bipartisan leadership of the Senate Intelligence Committee said Tuesday [9-12-17] they are likely to call representatives from Facebook Inc. to Capitol Hill to publicly detail Russian activity on the company’s platform during the 2016 election. In separate interviews with reporters, Sens. Richard Burr (R., N.C.) and Mark Warner (D., Va.) said they are […]
9/12/2017
LEGAL/ROBERT MULLER/RUSSIA/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT/TRUMP PEOPLE: “Lawyers representing Donald Trump’s current and former aides are giving their clients one simple piece of advice: Don’t lie to protect the president. As special counsel Robert Mueller and congressional investigators prepare to question high-ranking aides — including Hope Hicks, Reince Priebus and Sean Spicer — in the coming weeks, […]
9/11/2017
LEGAL/RUSSIA/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT/TRUMP FAMILY/JARED KUSHNER: “Some of President Donald Trump’s lawyers earlier this summer concluded that Jared Kushner should step down as senior White House adviser because of possible legal complications related to a probe of Russia’s involvement in the 2016 presidential election and aired concerns about him to the president, people familiar with the […]
9/8/2017
RUSSIA: “Russia’s newly installed ambassador to Washington said on Friday [9-8-17] that he had a warm and constructive meeting with U.S. President Donald Trump, Russian news agencies reported. ‘I was received by President Trump, I presented my credentials, for my part I said that we are looking forward to an improvement in the relations between […]
9/7/2017
LEGAL/RUSSIA/TRUMP FAMILY/DONALD JR: “Donald Trump Jr. told Senate investigators on Thursday [9-7-17] that he set up a June 2016 meeting with a Russian lawyer because he was intrigued that she might have damaging information about Hillary Clinton, saying it was important to learn about Mrs. Clinton’s ‘fitness’ to be president. But nothing came of the […]
9/7/2017
CHRIS WRAY/FBI/ROBERT MUELLER/RUSSIA: “FBI Director Chris Wray said Wednesday he had not detected ‘any whiff of interference’ by White House officials or any other individuals in the federal investigation into Russia’s meddling in the 2016 election. In his first public comments since taking the reins of the Federal Bureau of Investigation early last month, Mr. […]
9/7/2017
LEGAL/RUSSIA/TRUMP FAMILY/DONALD JR: “President Donald Trump’s eldest son told congressional investigators Thursday [9-7-17] he agreed to meet a Russian lawyer last summer who he was told had damaging information about Hillary Clinton because he believed the meeting could shed light on the ‘fitness, character or qualifications of a presidential candidate.’ In a closed-door meeting with […]
9/6/2017
LEGAL/RUSSIA/TRUMP FAMILY/DONALD JR: “Several congressional committees investigating Russian activity during the 2016 U.S. election are expected to hear this week from witnesses connected to the controversy, which has dominated the early months of Donald Trump’s presidency. Donald Trump Jr., the president’s eldest son, is scheduled to meet privately Thursday [9-7-17] with staff on the Senate […]
9/6/2017
LEGAL/RUSSIA/TRUMP FAMILY/DONALD JR: “Donald Trump Jr. is scheduled to meet in private Thursday [9-7-17] with the Senate Judiciary Committee for a long-awaited interview to discuss a 2016 meeting he arranged with a Kremlin-linked lawyer who promised damaging information about Hillary Clinton during the height of last year’s presidential campaign, according to Trump Jr.s’ attorney. The […]
9/5/2017
CHINA/RUSSIA/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “President Vladimir V. Putin seemed to be in top form during a news conference in China on Tuesday [9-5-17], answering a question about President Trump by saying the American leader is ‘not my bride, and I am not his groom.’ While the comment could be interpreted as a subtle jab by a […]
9/5/2017
FOREIGN POLICY/RUSSIA/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT/UKRAINE: “President Vladimir Putin said Tuesday [9-5-17] that any delivery of weapons by the Trump administration to Ukraine’s government could inflame hostilities and cause Russia-supported separatists to expand the theater of conflict. The comments are the Kremlin’s starkest warning yet about the potential consequences of any deliveries, and underscore the dilemma the […]
9/1/2017
RUSSIA: “Amid rare extreme heat in San Francisco, it was unusual to see black smoke billowing from a chimney on Friday [9-1-17]— not to mention that it was coming from the Russian Consulate, the day after the Trump administration ordered it closed. Neighbors gathered on the sidewalks to gawk; the Fire Department came to investigate; […]
9/1/2017
JAMES COMEY/ROBERT MUELLER/RUSSIA/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “The special counsel, Robert S. Mueller III, has obtained a letter that President Trump and a top political aide drafted in the days before Mr. Trump fired the F.B.I. director, James B. Comey, which explains the president’s rationale for why he planned to dismiss the director. The May letter had […]
9/1/2017
FOREIGN POLICY/NORTH KOREA/RUSSIA/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “President Vladimir Putin warned on Friday [9-1-17] that the standoff between North Korea and the United States was close to spilling into a large-scale conflict and said it was a mistake to try to pressure Pyongyang into halting its nuclear missile program. Putin, due to attend a summit of the […]
8/31/2017
FOREIGN POLICY/RUSSIA/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “The US announced Thursday [8-31-17] it will shutter the Russian consulate in San Francisco, as well as annexes in Washington and New York, in response to mandated staff cuts at the US mission in Russia. The move comes one day before Moscow’s deadline for US personnel to leave their positions and […]
8/31/2017
ENERGY/RUSSIA/VENEZUELA: “The Trump administration is ready to block a Russian state-owned oil giant from gaining control of critical U.S. energy assets owned by Moscow’s ally in Venezuela, senior American officials say, a move that could feed tensions between the old Cold-War foes. Petróleos de Venezuela SA offered Russia’s PAO Rosneft nearly half of its Citgo […]
8/30/2017
LEGAL/PAUL MANAFORT/RUSSIA: “Paul Manafort’s political-consulting firm was active for more than a decade doing work that often dovetailed with Russian political interests not only in Ukraine, but also in Georgia and Montenegro, other countries the Kremlin considered to be in its sphere of influence. A Wall Street Journal examination shows these efforts were broader in […]
8/30/2017
NATO/RUSSIA: “The North Atlantic Treaty Organization announced Wednesday [8-30-17] it would send three observers to Russia’s Zapad military exercise but said the invitation fell short of Moscow’s international obligations. The statement from NATO came as the U.S. took over the Baltic air-policing mission in Lithuania. The U.S. began flying seven F-15C jet fighters from the […]
8/30/2017
CAMPAIGN/RUSSIA/TRUMP BUSINESS: “Russian President Vladimir Putin’s spokesman confirmed on Wednesday [8-30-17] he had received an email in January last year from an adviser to Donald Trump about a Moscow real estate project, but said he had neither replied nor discussed it with Putin. The Washington Post reported this week that Michael Cohen, one of Trump’s […]
8/29/2017
LEGAL/RUSSIA/TRUMP FAMILY/DONALD JR: “The Senate Judiciary Committee has reached an agreement and set a date for Donald Trump Jr. to testify behind closed doors to the panel, the committee confirmed on Tuesday [8-29-17]. The committee would not divulge the exact date, but another source familiar with the matter said the testimony would likely occur in […]
8/28/2017
LEGAL/RUSSIA/TRUMP PEOPLE: “Michael Cohen, an attorney for the Trump Organization, discussed a prospective real-estate deal in Moscow with Donald Trump on three occasions during the presidential campaign, Mr. Cohen said in an interview with The Wall Street Journal. In 2015, Mr. Cohen said, he informed the then-candidate that he was working on a licensing deal […]
8/25/2017
LEGAL/MICHAEL FLYNN/ROBERT MUELLER/RUSSIA: “Special counsel Robert Mueller is examining what role, if any, former national security adviser Mike Flynn may have played in a private effort to obtain Hillary Clinton’s emails from Russian hackers, according to people familiar with the matter. The effort to seek out hackers who were believed to have stolen Mrs. Clinton’s […]
8/25/2017
MILITARY/NATO/RUSSIA: “Russia is preventing proper international observation of large military exercises near the Polish border next month, NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said Friday, echoing European governments’ growing apprehension over troops massing on the tense geopolitical fault line. Russia will send troops to Belarus, next to Poland, next month as part of an every-few-years exercise called […]
8/24/2017
DEFENSE/JAMES MATTIS/RUSSIA/UKRAINE: “Defense Secretary Jim Mattis vowed on Thursday [8-24-17] to help Ukraine stand up to Russian violations of its sovereignty and signaled that the Trump administration was considering providing defensive weapons to the Ukrainian military. President Barack Obama had resisted such a step, fearing it would be seen as a provocation by Russia. In […]
8/24/2017
FOREIGN POLICY/MILITARY/RUSSIA: “Two US B-1 bombers and one B-52 Stratofortress arrived in the United Kingdom on Wednesday [8-23-17] for an annual international war games event taking place at the same time as a controversial Russian military exercise. The long-range B-1s, from the 7th Bomb Wing at Dyess Air Force Base, Texas, and the B-52, from […]
8/21/2017
LOBBYING/RUSSIA: “Rinat Akhmetshin, a Russian immigrant who met last summer with senior Trump campaign officials, has often struck colleagues as a classic Washington mercenary — loyal to his wife, his daughter and his bank account. He avoided work that would antagonize Moscow, they suggested, only because he profited from his reputation as a man with […]
8/22/2017
CYBERWAR/NATIONAL SECURITY/RUSSIA/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “U.S. President Donald Trump would be required to notify U.S. lawmakers before creating a joint U.S.-Russia cyber security unit – an idea that has drawn criticism across the political spectrum – under legislation advancing in Congress. The proposal, if it became law, would be the latest in a series of maneuvers […]
8/21/2017
FOREIGN POLICY/RUSSIA: “The U.S. is sharply cutting back visa services in Russia after the Kremlin responded to fresh U.S. sanctions by capping the number of U.S. diplomats in the country. The U.S. embassy said on its website that it would suspend all nonimmigrant visa operations across Russia on Aug. 23 and restart them on Sept. […]
8/21/2017
AMBASSADOR/RUSSIA: “Russia’s next ambassador to Washington will be Anatoly Antonov, a former defense official who is subject to European sanctions over his role in the conflict in Ukraine, the Kremlin announced on Monday [8-21-17]. Antonov takes over from Sergei Kislyak, whose contacts with members of President Donald Trump’s campaign team made him a central figure […]
8/11/2017
RUSSIA/TRUMP FAMILY/JARED KUSHNER: “The Senate Judiciary Committee is calling on the White House to provide new details about President Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner’s security clearance application, including whether he could be trusted with sensitive information after he initially failed to disclose meetings with Russian officials. The committee, led by Republican Chairman Chuck Grassley of Iowa, […]
8/10/2017
AMBASSADOR/RUSSIA/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “President Trump offered gratitude rather than outrage on Thursday [8-10-17] 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 […]
8/10/2017
LEGAL/PAUL MANAFORT/RUSSIA: “Paul Manafort, President Donald Trump’s former campaign manager, has tapped a new legal team to represent him as government lawyers examine possible Russian meddling in the 2016 U.S. presidential election, his spokesman Jason Maloni said. Law firm WilmerHale had been speaking on Manafort’s behalf to investigators, but that relationship has ended, Maloni said. […]
8/10/2017
NATIONAL SECURITY/RUSSIA: “A low-flying Russian airplane created a buzz in the nation’s capital on Wednesday [8-9-17], but it turns out the surveillance flight over the Capitol, Pentagon and other sites was cleared by the U.S. government under a long-standing global treaty. The flight, which was filmed by The Associated Press, was permitted under the Open […]
8/9/2017
INTELLIGENCE/PAUL MANAFORT/ROBERT MUELLER/RUSSIA: “Investigators for the special counsel, Robert S. Mueller III, recently searched a home of President Trump’s former campaign manager, Paul Manafort, for tax documents and foreign banking records, according to a person briefed on the matter. Officials did not disclose where the search warrant was carried out. Mr. Manafort has homes in […]
8/7/2017
POLITICS/RUSSIA: “Interesting to watch Senator Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut talking about hoax Russian collusion when he was a phony Vietnam con artist!” -Donald Trump, Twitter.com, August 7, 2017 06:47am […]
8/7/2017
REX TILLERSON/RUSSIA/STATE: “U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson told Russia’s foreign minister that the U.S. would respond to that country’s recent expulsion of American diplomats by Sept. 1 and that the nations must confront the distrust created by Moscow’s meddling in the U.S. presidential election. Mr. Tillerson, speaking with journalists Monday at an Asian regional […]
8/5/2017
NORTH KOREA/RUSSIA/UN: “The United Nations Security Council just voted 15-0 to sanction North Korea. China and Russia voted with us. Very big financial impact!” -Donald Trump, Twitter.com, August 5, 2017 05:44pm […]
8/3/2017
GOP/POLITICS/RUSSIA/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “President Donald Trump chafed on Thursday [8-3-17] over the new dive in U.S. relations with Russia, widening a rift with his own Republican Party as he blamed Congress for causing the tensions with a new package of sanctions. Far removed from his election campaign promises to improve relations with Vladimir Putin and […]
8/3/2017
LEGAL/ROBERT MUELLER/RUSSIA: “Special Counsel Robert Mueller has impaneled a grand jury in Washington to investigate Russia’s interference in the 2016 elections, a sign that his inquiry is growing in intensity and entering a new phase, according to people familiar with the matter. The grand jury, which began its work in recent weeks, signals that Mr. […]
8/3/2017
HEALTHCARE/OBAMACARE(ACA)/RUSSIA: “Our relationship with Russia is at an all-time & very dangerous low. You can thank Congress, the same people that can’t even give us HCare!” -Donald Trump, Twitter.com, August 3, 2017 07:18am […]