Trump Certainly Knows How To Please Putin By: Lifting Sanctions On Russian Companies & Withdrawing U.S. Troops From Syria

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The U.S. Treasury Department announced today, Wednesday, December 19, 2018, that it would lift sanctions on three Russian companies tied to Oleg Deripaska ( an oligarch who once employed Paul Manafort, President Trump’s former campaign manager), according to Wall Street Journal. Sanctions on Deripaska and companies with ties to Deripaska were passed in April  of 2018 under a law passed by Congress to punish Russia for interfering in the 2016 presidential election, in addition to other malign activities.

As part of the agreement, Deripaska, remaining under U.S. sanctions for allegations of extortion and illegal business practices,  will reduce his ownership stake in the parent company of Rusal  (the world’s second largest aluminum producer). As a result of U.S. sanctions on Rusal back in April of 2018, the global aluminum prices were dramatically impacted. Steve Mnuchin, the U.S. Treasury Secretary, stated that the U.S. sanctioned  the companies due to their ties to Deripaska, “not for the conduct of the companies themselves.” He also added, “These companies have committed to significantly diminish Deripaska’s ownership and sever his control. The companies will be subject to ongoing compliance and will face severe consequences if they fail to comply.” The U.S. Treasury Department announced that it would lift financial sanctions on Deripaska’s aluminum company, United Co. Rusal, En+ Group plc , and JSC EuroSibEnergo in 30 days, after Deripaska agreed to reduce his ownership stake in each of the companies to below 50%.

On the other hand: According to a report by Reuters, on Wednesday, the United States imposed new sanctions on Russia, expanding a blacklist of individuals allegedly involved in a Kremlin-backed campaign to interfere with the 2016 presidential election. The new sanctions reportedly target 15 members of a Russian military intelligence service, as well as four entities, involved with the alleged interference, the hacking of the World Anti-Doping Agency and other ‘malign activities’ globally. However, the US Treasury Department also announced that it would lift sanctions on major aluminum company Rusal and two other firms ties to Oleg Deripaska, after a deal was reached to sever the oligarch’s control over them, in the video “U.S. Imposes New Sanctions On Russia For Global ‘Malign Activities’ “, below:

The leaders of the Senate Intelligence Committee noted in a joint statement on Wednesday, that the agreement between U.S. Treasury and Deripaska “does not change the fact that Mr. Deripaska, his employees, and his companies work at Vladimir Putin’s behest and operate as de facto representatives of the Russian government.” According to the Treasury, the sanctions will be lifted in 30 days. However, Congress could block this move.

Back in the end of November, 2018, Rachel Maddow showed how the Trump Organization’s continued pursuit of a Trump Tower Moscow deal into the 2016 campaign, exposed by Michael Cohen this week, explains Donald Trump’s soft stance on sanctioning Russian entities, including the bank that would finance the Trump Tower deal, in the video “Lifting Russian Sanctions Key To Trump Deal Exposed By Michael Cohen, Rachel Maddow” , below:

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On Wednesday morning, December 19, 2018, despite Pentagon’s effort in trying to talk him out of doing this, President Trump tweeted his announcement, “We have defeated ISIS in Syria, my only reason for being there during the Trump Presidency.” Rukmini Callimachi, foreign correspondent for The New York Times, talks with Rachel Maddow about the shocked reaction by the U.S. led coalition to Donald Trump’s announcement of a pullout of U.S. troops from Syria, and why the move seems more in the interest of Turkey than the United States., in the video “President Trump Announces Syria Plan Counter To U.S. Goals;Allies Baffled, by Rachel Maddow“, below:

Senior western coalition officials described President Trump’s announcement to pull out of Syria as being “catastrophic, a disaster, reckless“. As indicated in Rachel Maddow’s assessment in the video above, the withdrawal of U.S. troops from Syria would not only please Turkey, but also Russia, for if U.S. withdraw from Syria, the Russian military force will have significantly more impact in Syria than before U.S. withdrawal.
Heritage Foundation senior fellow Peter Brookes on President Trump’s tweet about ISIS and how the U.S. may withdraw the military from Syria, in the video “Trump declares victory over ISIS in Syria“, below:

U.S. Senator Lindsey Graham (R-South Carolina) will hold a press conference today on the Trump Administration’s decision to withdraw U.S. forces from northeastern Syria, in the video “Live: Senator Lindsey Graham holds press conference”, below: