ABOARD AIR FORCE ONE - U.S. President
Donald Trump on Thursday abruptly canceled a planned meeting
with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Argentina, registering
his disapproval of Russia's treatment of Ukraine and casting new
uncertainty over U.S.-Russian ties.
Trump said he pulled out due to tensions over Russian forces
opening fire on Ukrainian navy boats and then seizing them and
their crew on Sunday near Crimea, which Russia annexed from
Ukraine in 2014.
His decision also comes as a federal investigation into his
2016 election campaign's ties to Russia is intensifying. Trump's
former lawyer Michael Cohen pleaded guilty on Thursday to lying
to Congress about a proposed Trump real estate project in
Russia.
"Based on the fact that the ships and sailors have not been
returned to Ukraine from Russia, I have decided it would be best
for all parties concerned to cancel my previously scheduled
meeting in Argentina with President Vladimir Putin. I look
forward to a meaningful Summit again as soon as this situation
is resolved!" Trump tweeted.
Based on the fact that the ships and sailors have not been returned to Ukraine from Russia, I have decided it would be best for all parties concerned to cancel my previously scheduled meeting....
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) November 29, 2018
....in Argentina with President Vladimir Putin. I look forward to a meaningful Summit again as soon as this situation is resolved!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) November 29, 2018
Trump's tweet from aboard Air Force One shortly after
takeoff from Washington on the way to Buenos Aires for a Group
of 20 summit, was a sudden turnaround.
Roughly an hour earlier, he had told reporters he would
probably meet with Putin at the summit and said it was "a very
good time to have the meeting."
Trump had also said he would get a final report during the
flight to Argentina on the tension in the region after Russia
seized Ukrainian vessels near Crimea on Sunday.
Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko on Thursday accused
Putin of wanting to annex his entire country and called for NATO
to deploy warships to a sea shared by the two nations.
While it was unclear why there was a sudden change in plans
for a meeting, holding talks with Putin now could represent bad
optics for the White House at a time when the president is under
scrutiny over prior plans to build a Trump Tower in Moscow.
Cohen pleaded guilty on Thursday to lying to Congress about
the proposed Trump Organization skyscraper in Moscow, prompting
Trump to lash out at Cohen as a "liar" and "weak person."
AIR FORCE ONE
White House spokeswoman Sarah Sanders told reporters on the
presidential aircraft that Trump made the decision not to meet
Putin after speaking with Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, White
House chief of staff John Kelly and national security adviser
John Bolton.
The decision appeared to catch the Kremlin by surprise. The
Kremlin's spokesman said Moscow had no official information on
Trump's decision, and that if true, Putin would have some extra
time for a useful meeting at the G20 summit.
Differences over Ukraine, as well as Moscow's role in the
civil war in Syria, have been an irritant in U.S.-Russian
relations for years.
Democratic U.S. Senator Bob Menendez of New Jersey said
Trump was missing an "oppopportunity to redeem himself, stand up
for American values, stand up for international law, stand up
for our own national security interests, and he had that
opportunity and instead he's abdicating it.”
“It is ironic that this President cannot find his spine to
confront Vladimir Putin but can challenge the closest allies the
United States has across the globe," Menendez said.
The administration of former President Barack Obama imposed
sanctions on Russia for its annexation of Crimea from Ukraine in
2014. That in part brought ties between Washington and Moscow to
their lowest point since the end of the Cold War.
Since then, the United States has investigated Russia's
possible interference in the 2016 election that Trump won.
Russia has denied meddling and Trump has repeatedly said there
was no collusion.
Russia seized three Ukrainian navy ships and their crews on
Sunday near Crimea over what it said was their illegal entry
into Russian waters, which Ukraine denies.
Some of Ukraine's Western allies have raised the possibility
of imposing new sanctions on Russia over the episode, which
could deliver a blow to the Russian economy.
Kiev is aiming to gain Western support for more economic
sanctions against Moscow, secure tangible Western military help,
and rally opposition to a Russian gas pipeline that threatens to
deprive Ukraine of important transit revenue.