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Trump, Pressured to Criticize Russia for Poisoning, Leaves Comment to Aides Trump, Pressured to Criticize Russia for Poisoning, Leaves Comment to Aides
(about 9 hours later)
LOS ANGELES — Britain’s tough response in holding Russia responsible for a poisoning attack on its soil increased the pressure on President Trump to join with a NATO ally in taking action, even as he has been reluctant to retaliate for Moscow’s intervention in the 2016 election in the United States. ST. LOUIS — Britain’s tough response in holding Russia responsible for a poisoning attack on its soil increased the pressure on President Trump to join with a NATO ally in taking action, even as he has been reluctant to retaliate for Moscow’s intervention in the 2016 election in the United States.
Mr. Trump, who was visiting California before heading to Missouri on Wednesday, has not personally addressed the attack since London assigned blame to Russia. Aides released a statement in his name on Tuesday evening after he spoke with Prime Minister Theresa May of Britain by telephone expressing his solidarity. Mr. Trump, who was visiting Missouri on Wednesday, has not personally addressed the attack since London assigned blame to Russia and left it instead to aides to express public solidarity with Prime Minister Theresa May after she expelled 23 Russian diplomats, canceled high-level contacts and vowed to impose more sanctions.
“President Trump agreed with Prime Minister May that the government of the Russian Federation must provide unambiguous answers regarding how this chemical weapon, developed in Russia, came to be used in the United Kingdom,” the statement issued in Mr. Trump’s name said. “The two leaders agreed on the need for consequences for those who use these heinous weapons in flagrant violation of international norms.” “This latest action by Russia fits into a pattern of behavior in which Russia disregards the international rules-based order, undermines the sovereignty and security of countries worldwide, and attempts to subvert and discredit Western democratic institutions and processes,” the White House said in a written statement. “The United States is working together with our allies and partners to ensure that this kind of abhorrent attack does not happen again.”
The British readout of the call attributed stronger language to Mr. Trump than his own White House statement did, reporting that during their conversation, “President Trump said the U.S. was with the U.K. all the way.” But for whatever reason, Mr. Trump avoided saying so personally in public, much as he has generally avoided condemning Russia for its election meddling. He has allowed top advisers to denounce Moscow for its interference in American democracy, but when it comes to his own Twitter posts or comments, he has largely stuck to equivocal language, seemingly reluctant to accept the consensus conclusion of his intelligence agencies and intent on voicing no outrage or criticism of President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia, for whom he has expressed admiration.
The president made no further comment on Wednesday after Mrs. May expelled 23 Russian diplomats and vowed to crack down on Russian spies, corrupt elites and ill-gotten wealth in Britain. His first messages on his Twitter account on Wednesday concerned trade, infrastructure and his complaints that Senate Democrats are obstructing confirmation of his nominees. Instead, through early evening, Mr. Trump used his Twitter feed to focus on issues like trade, infrastructure, school safety and his complaints that Senate Democrats are obstructing confirmation of his nominees. His only public comments during the day came at a Boeing plant where he talked about tax cuts.
A Trump administration official said Wednesday morning that the United States was working on a joint statement with Britain, France and Germany that should be issued later in the day and added that it would be strongly worded. Critics of both parties pressed the president to speak out personally and possibly take action to back up Mrs. May.
But Democrats and other critics of the president pressed him to speak out personally and possibly take action to back up Mrs. May. “Where Prime Minister May has taken bold and decisive initial action to combat Russian aggression, our own president has waffled and demurred,” said Senator Chuck Schumer of New York, the Democratic leader. “Prime Minister May’s decision to expel the Russian diplomats is the level of response that many Americans have been craving from our own administration.”
“Where Prime Minister May has taken bold and decisive initial action to combat Russian aggression, our own president has waffled and demurred,” said Senator Chuck Schumer of New York, the Democratic minority leader. “Prime Minister May’s decision to expel the Russian diplomats is the level of response that many Americans have been craving from our own administration.” Senator Ben Sasse, Republican of Nebraska, said the United States should consult with NATO allies about “a collective response,” including the possibility of expelling Russian diplomats from Washington and other alliance capitals or freezing more Russian assets. “We ought to make it inescapably clear to Russia that its shadow war will be met with a coordinated response,” he said.
Other critics noted that, under the NATO charter, an attack on one member is considered an attack on all. Evelyn Farkas, a former Pentagon official who oversaw Russia policy under President Barack Obama, said Mr. Trump should offer a range of assistance to Britain to help investigate the episode, prevent further such attacks on British sovereignty and impose punishment. She added that the United States could cite the suspicious death of Mikhail Y. Lesin, a former Russian minister, in a Washington hotel in 2015, in taking joint action. Investigators concluded that he died from a drunken fall but many remain skeptical.
“Judgment day for Donald Trump,” R. Nicholas Burns, a former ambassador to NATO and an under secretary of state under President George W. Bush, wrote on Twitter. Referring to President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia, he added: “Will he support Britain unequivocally on the nerve agent attack? Back #NATO sanctions? Finally criticize Putin? Act like a leader of the West?”
Evelyn Farkas, a former Pentagon official who oversaw Russia policy under President Barack Obama, said Mr. Trump should offer a range of assistance to Britain to help investigate the incident, prevent further such attacks on British sovereignty and impose punishment. She added that the United States could cite the suspicious death of Mikhail Y. Lesin, a former Russian minister, in a Washington hotel in 2015, in taking joint action. Investigators concluded that he died from a drunken fall but many remain skeptical.
“Frankly, I believe we should have and could still do this in response to Russia’s election interference in the United States and several other NATO countries,” she said. “We certainly should craft additional sanctions together with the U.K. and the E.U. to address the assassinations.”“Frankly, I believe we should have and could still do this in response to Russia’s election interference in the United States and several other NATO countries,” she said. “We certainly should craft additional sanctions together with the U.K. and the E.U. to address the assassinations.”
Until Tuesday night, the White House had avoided pointing the finger at Russia for the attack, in which a former Russian spy was poisoned with a nerve agent near his home in southern England.Until Tuesday night, the White House had avoided pointing the finger at Russia for the attack, in which a former Russian spy was poisoned with a nerve agent near his home in southern England.
At her briefing on Monday, Sarah Huckabee Sanders, the White House press secretary, condemned the attack without publicly agreeing with Britain’s assessment that Russia was behind it. The administration’s only tough comment on Russian involvement until Tuesday came from Secretary of State Rex W. Tillerson, but he has since been fired.At her briefing on Monday, Sarah Huckabee Sanders, the White House press secretary, condemned the attack without publicly agreeing with Britain’s assessment that Russia was behind it. The administration’s only tough comment on Russian involvement until Tuesday came from Secretary of State Rex W. Tillerson, but he has since been fired.
By Tuesday morning, lower-level American officials joined in backing Britain as it retaliated against Russia. Mr. Trump and Ms. May then talked by phone on Tuesday night, and the White House issued a statement expressing his solidarity with her. The British readout of the call attributed stronger language to Mr. Trump than his own White House statement did, reporting that during their conversation, “President Trump said the U.S. was with the U.K. all the way.”
“We stand in solidarity with our @NATO Ally, the United Kingdom, in condemning the offensive use of a nerve agent on their territory,” Kay Bailey Hutchison, the American ambassador to NATO, wrote on Twitter. “Russia must address UK questions & provide full disclosure of their chemical weapon program to @OPCW,” the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons. By Wednesday morning, lower-level American officials joined in backing Britain as it retaliated against Russia.
But the pattern resembles the way Mr. Trump has responded to the consensus finding of American intelligence agencies that Russia interfered in the 2016 elections. He has allowed top advisers to condemn Moscow for its election meddling but personally has used equivocal language in saying he accepts the conclusion — and generally expresses no outrage or criticism of Mr. Putin. “Russia is responsible for the attack on two people in the United Kingdom using a military-grade nerve agent,” Nikki R. Haley, the ambassador to the United Nations, said at an emergency Security Council session, calling the poisoning “an atrocious crime.”
That did not satisfy those who said the president should show personal leadership. “Judgment day for Donald Trump,” R. Nicholas Burns, a former ambassador to NATO and an under secretary of state under President George W. Bush, wrote on Twitter. “Will he support Britain unequivocally on the nerve agent attack? Back #NATO sanctions? Finally criticize Putin? Act like a leader of the West?”
Mr. Trump has at times grudgingly accepted that Russia meddled in the 2016 election but usually sounds more determined to rebut any suspicions that his campaign colluded with Moscow or that whatever meddling took place helped him win. He has opted against imposing sanctions beyond those already imposed by Mr. Obama despite a new law passed overwhelmingly authorizing further penalties.
Asked about the meddling last week, after Robert S. Mueller III, the special counsel, indicted 13 Russians for spreading disinformation and propaganda in a concerted effort to influence the election, Mr. Trump focused on whether it changed the result, and avoided strong words about Moscow.Asked about the meddling last week, after Robert S. Mueller III, the special counsel, indicted 13 Russians for spreading disinformation and propaganda in a concerted effort to influence the election, Mr. Trump focused on whether it changed the result, and avoided strong words about Moscow.
“Well, the Russians had no impact on our votes whatsoever,” he said during a news conference with Sweden’s prime minister. “But certainly there was meddling and probably there was meddling from other countries and maybe other individuals. And I think you have to be really watching very closely. You don’t want your system of votes to be compromised in any way. And we won’t allow that to happen.”“Well, the Russians had no impact on our votes whatsoever,” he said during a news conference with Sweden’s prime minister. “But certainly there was meddling and probably there was meddling from other countries and maybe other individuals. And I think you have to be really watching very closely. You don’t want your system of votes to be compromised in any way. And we won’t allow that to happen.”
Even beyond Twitter, Mr. Trump will have opportunities to speak out on the attack in Britain if he chooses. Raj Shah, a White House spokesman, said on Wednesday that the president took the election meddling seriously and had ordered his administration to take steps to prevent it from happening again.
He plans to fly to St. Louis, where he will tour a Boeing plant and inspect warplanes it is making. He then will headline a fund-raiser for a Republican candidate running for Senate in Missouri before returning to Washington on Wednesday evening. When asked if the president would eventually opt for retaliation in addition to prevention, Mr. Shah implied that Mr. Trump already had, but in secret. “There are steps that I’m talking about that we can talk about,” he said. “Then there are steps that we can’t talk about publicly but that our adversaries know that we are engaged in.”