When America Toes Moscow’s Line | Politico – April 2017 |
I saw what happens when a U.S. president lets Vladimir Putin get away with murder. His name was Barack Obama.
By MIKHEIL SAAKASHVILI March 31, 2017
For someone with personal experience of Russian harassment and full-blown military attack, it is hard to observe the recent debate in the United States about Russian meddling with merely an academic interest. As the president of Georgia from 2004 to 2013, I saw firsthand how Russia treats its neighbors–and now Americans are getting a small taste of what former Soviet states have experienced for decades.
In August 2008, Russian troops headed toward Tbilisi, the Georgian capital, were stopped by the somehow belated but still powerful intervention of the George W. Bush administration, which made very clear to the Russians that Washington would not tolerate the full occupation of Georgia and the overthrow of its democratically elected government.
…
What of President Donald Trump? It’s true that some of his seemingly pro-Russian statements have also been met with alarm in our countries, as we are all too used to the reality that big countries can always deal with one another at the expense of smaller ones.But I also have my own personal experience with Trump. After the 2008 invasion, many politicians in the West would avoid me in order not to alienate Putin–and many businessmen did, too. Anyone who invested in Georgia risked becoming persona non grata with Putin, precluding them from making money in Russia. In 2009, Trump faced the same dilemma. He had a choice to make between investment projects in Georgia or Russia, with Russia promising greater returns, but Georgia being attractive as an uncorrupt, safe place, and one of easiest countries to do business in the world. And Trump, who clearly had presidential ambitions even back then, opted for Georgia, and this very fact speaks volumes for me. I never detected any weakness in Trump for the Russian system–in fact he was very skeptical of corruption and red tape in Russia in his conversations with me.
Of course, legitimate questions need to be answered about whether anyone in his camp colluded with Moscow, but based on my personal experience, I believe the conspiracy theories that are swirling around Trump are just that: theories. What is unquestionable fact is that his predecessor’s weakness and misreading of Putin has led to dire consequences in this part of the world. When will you Americans investigate that?
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in Black Sea region greeted with derision in Moscow (The Guardian)
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Republicans Targeting Obama Team In New Effort
GOP senators call for probe into Susan Rice ‘unmasking’ reports | NY Post |
Two Republican senators called on Congress to investigate whether former National Security Adviser Susan Rice had political motives for “unmasking” Team Trump officials who were inadvertently caught on US surveillance.
“I’m not going to prejudge here, but I think every American should know whether or not the national security adviser to President Obama was involved in unmasking Trump transition figures for political purposes,” Sen. Lindsay Graham (R-SC) told Fox News. “It should be easy to figure out, and we will.”
“When it comes to Susan Rice, you need to verify, not trust,” Graham said.
Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) went even further, calling for Rice to be subpoenaed and forced to spill her guts about what Obama knew of her activities.
“The facts will come out with Susan Rice, but I think she ought to be under subpoena, and she needs to be asked, `Did you talk to the president about it? Did President Obama know about this?’ ” Paul said on MSNBC.
GOP went after Susan Rice to undermine her credentials to become Secretary of State in 2012
○ Susan Rice faces renewed criticism from Republican senators – as it happened | The Guardian – Nov. 28, 2012 |
○ Senator Susan Collins Goes Back To Africa To Raise Questions About Susan Rice Nomination
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