Trump hints at scrapping sanctions on Russia

International Desk: The US president-elect is willing to meet Russia's Vladimir Putin and possibly revoke the sanctions, according to Trump's interview to the Wall Street Journal. The US stance on Taiwan was "under negotiation," he added.

The latest US sanctions against Moscow, imposed by Barrack Obama in December, would stay in place "at least for a period of time" under the new administration, Donald Trump told the Wall Street Journal in an interview published on Saturday.

At the same time, he suggested that he might change course if Moscow cooperated with Washington, especially on fighting Islamic extremism.

"If Russia is really helping us, why would anybody have sanctions?" Trump asked.

Trump's ties with Russia have sparked deep concerns in Washington, with the US Senate preparing an investigation into the alleged Russian-run campaign to boost Trump's chances in the vote. However, Trump has made no qualms about his desire to repair the US-Russia relations, which have taken a nosedive during recent years.

In the interview, Trump said he was willing to meet Putin after taking office.

"I understand that they would like to meet, and that's absolutely fine with me," he said.

Beijing is 'doing it on purpose'

During the campaign, Trump repeatedly warned against the economic threat of China and accused Beijing of manipulating the value of its currency to harm US companies.

"Instead of saying, 'We're devaluating our currency,' they say, 'Oh, our currency is dropping,'" he told the Journal. "It's not dropping. They're doing it on purpose."

"Our companies can't compete with them now because our currency is strong and it's killing us," he added.

Trump has already sparked uproar in China for undermining Washington's "One China" policy. For decades, the US has avoided direct diplomatic contact with Taiwan's leaders, concurring with Beijing's assertion that Taiwan is simply a breakaway province of China. Taiwanese authorities consider the island an independent country.

Without challenging the Chinese stance openly, the US maintains strong unofficial ties with Taiwan, including trade and weapons sales.

Source: Agencies

 

risingbd/Dhaka/Jan 14, 2017/A K Azad