Plan B Forum

Trump Administration Set to Lift Sanctions on Putin Associate's Company

(Bloomberg) — The Trump administration is ready to remove sanctions on Russian billionaire Oleg Deripaska’s aluminum company, United Co. Rusal, after reaching an agreement to significantly reduce his ownership stake.

Deripaska will remain under U.S. sanctions and his property will remain blocked, but Treasury intends to remove financial restrictions on Rusal, En+ Group Plc and JSC EuroSibEnergo. The move will take effect in 30 days unless Congress blocks the action, [so let's see some action] the Treasury Department said in a statement Wednesday.

“These companies have committed to significantly diminish Deripaska’s ownership and sever his control,” Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said in the statement. “The companies will be subject to ongoing compliance and will face severe consequences if they fail to comply.”

Mnuchin added that Treasury “maintains the ability under the terms of the agreement to have unprecedented levels of transparency into operations.”

Moscow celebrated Wednesday's surprise news that the US plans to leave Syria "as quickly as possible." The Russian Foreign Ministry, according to Russian media outlet Tass, said "hope emerges," arguing that "once Americans were there, there was no such hope."

The Russian military has been active in Syria since 2015. Without the US military standing in its way, Russia will be able to significantly expand its influence.

"Donald's right, and I agree with him," Putin said of Trump's decision to withdraw American forces from Syria, according to The New York Times.

Putin did, though, express some skepticism that the pullout would occur, noting that the U.S. had announced a withdrawal from Afghanistan by 2014 but still has forces in the country.

US military ordered to begin planning to withdraw about half the troops in Afghanistan

Graham: Trump's Syria withdrawal a 'stain on the honor of the United States'

WASHINGTON --

Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham called President Donald Trump's decision to immediately withdraw US troops from Syria a "disaster" and "a stain on the honor of the United States."

In a speech on the Senate floor Wednesday night, Graham, one of Trump's closest allies in Congress, called the move "disastrous to our own national security" and a decision that was made "against sound military advice." Graham said this decision would make Americans around the world and here at home "more at risk, not less."

The South Carolina congressman said he was shocked by the decision and characterized the move as a betrayal to our allies in the region.

"We have been dishonorable. This is a stain on the honor of the United States," Graham said.

"I'm not saying we need to be in Syria forever. I'm saying now's not time to leave," Graham said.

Graham was one of a group of senators who wrote a letter to Trump on Wednesday night asking him to change course.

Republican Sens. Joni Ernst, Marco Rubio and Tom Cotton; Democratic Sen. Jeanne Shaheen; and independent Sen. Angus King sent the letter.

In it, they wrote, "If you decide to follow through with your decision to pull our troops out of Syria, any remnants of ISIS in Syria will surely renew and embolden their efforts in the region. However, ISIS is not the only threat. The brutal dictatorship of Bashar al Assad continues to weigh heavily upon the Syrian people, and we fear that a withdrawal of our troops may embolden Bashar al Assad to take further actions to solidify his power."

Graham: Afghanistan withdrawal would be ‘paving the way toward a second 9/11’

Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) said Thursday that withdrawing U.S. troops from Afghanistan would be a “high risk strategy” that could pave “the way toward a second 9/11.”

“Like in Syria, troop withdrawal should be based on conditions on the ground," he said in a statement. "The conditions in Afghanistan – at the present moment – make American troop withdrawals a high risk strategy. If we continue on our present course we are setting in motion the loss of all our gains and paving the way toward a second 9/11.”

I think Trump wants a terrorist attack

Lord Jim wrote:And for the Kurds, who trusted us and have been one of our most reliable and capable allies in the region, President Feckless has a gift certificate for Blood Bath and Beyond...