Page 6 - RPTRusFeb17

2.0 Politics
2.1 Trump says Russia must return Crimea to Ukraine
US President Donald Trump expects Russia to de-escalate violence in Ukraine and return the Crimean Peninsula, w hich was annexed by the Kremlin in 2014, to Kyiv's control, White House press secretary Sean Spicer told journalists on February 14.
"At the same time, he fully expects to and wants to be able to get along with Russia, unlike previous administrations, so that we can solve many problems together facing the world, such as the threat of ISIS and terrorism," Spicer added during a briefing in Washington.
The statement was immediately welcomed by official Kyiv. Svytoslav Tsegolko, a spokesman of Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko, called Spicer's statement "good" adding that Russian "should return Crimea to Ukraine".
Moscow's reaction to the White House statement was emphatic.
"As for Crimea’s return, this issue will not be discussed as it cannot be discussed. Russia does not discuss its territorial issues with foreign partners," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said in remarks reported by TASS on February 15. Nor was the issue of Crimea’s status was not discussed during the phone conversation between Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin on January 28, Peskov added.
The bromance between Russia and Trump has faded after a month. Russian TV has gone from positive to neutral reporting. A fast resolution to sanctions is now unlikely.
According to bne sources during the call between Trump and Putin the Kremlin asked Trump not to withdraw sanctions , but to wait until EU dropped its sanctions first. The Kremlin is afraid if Trump acts that would spur Congress into legislating and a law is much harder to undo than a presidential executive order.
2.2 Freedom House slams Russia
Russia last year demonstrated "stunning hubris and hostility as it interfered in the political processes of the United States and other democracies, escalated its military support for the Assad dictatorship in Syria, and solidified its illegal occupation of Ukrainian territory" , Freedom House said in its Freedom in the World 2017 report released on January 31.
The report, which classified Russia as "Not Free" with 20 points of a possible
6 RUSSIA Country Report February 2017 www.intellinews.com