Page 2 - ARUBA TODAY

A2 UP FRONT
Monday 24 July 2017
Kislyak, Russian ambassador to US, concludes assignment

By CATHERINE LUCEY with Sessions. The Justice
Associated Press Department said Sessions
WASHINGTON (AP) — Rus- stands by his previous as-
sian ambassador to the sertion that he never had
United States Sergei Kislyak conversations with Russian
— a high-profile figure in officials about any type of
the controversy over Rus- interference with the elec-
sian meddling in the 2016 tion.
presidential election— has The president’s son-in-law
concluded his assignment and senior adviser Jared
in Washington. Kushner has also been criti-
The Russian Embassy in cized for failing to imme-
Washington announced diately disclose a meeting
on Twitter that Kislyak’s ten- with Kislyak on his security
ure ended on Saturday. clearance questionnaire.
Kislyak’s successor has In that December meet-
not been announced, ing, he proposed a secret
although it is widely ex- back channel between
pected to be Anatoly An- the Kremlin and the Trump
tonov, a deputy foreign transition team.
minister and former deputy During a long diplomatic
defense minister seen as career, Kislyak has led the
a hardliner regarding the life of a fairly typical global
United States. In this Monday, July 17, 2017 photo, Russian Ambassador to the U.S. Sergei Kislyak arrives at the envoy, making himself a
A Washington fixture with a State Department in Washington. Kislyak, a prominent figure in the controversy over Russia’s pos- reliable presence on the
sprawling network, Kislyak sible involvement in the 2016 U.S. presidential election, has ended his assignment in Washington. circuit of receptions, teas
has emerged as a central The Russian Embassy in Washington announced on Twitter that Kislyak’s tenure ended on Satur- and forums that make up
figure in the investigations day, July 22, 2017. the calendar of any am-
into Russian interference in (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster) bassador.
the election and whether Trump’s first national secu- gation after acknowledg- year. The Post cited anon- Kislyak, who was appoint-
any Trump associates were rity adviser, Michael Flynn, ing two previously undis- ymous U.S. officials who ed to his post in 2008, is
involved. President Donald was fired after the White closed contacts with Kis- described U.S. intelligence regularly spotted walking
Trump has repeatedly dis- House concluded he had lyak. intercepts of Kislyak’s de- around town, heading to
missed the story as “fake not been truthful about On Friday, the Washington scriptions of his meetings and from meetings. q
news,” but the investiga- conversations he had with Post reported that Kislyak
tions have shown no signs Kislyak. Attorney General said he discussed election-
of stopping, with a focus Jeff Sessions recused him- related issues with Sessions Cuba’s public face of diplomatic
on top aides heightening. self from the Russia investi- when the men met last opening with US departing post

By MICHAEL WEISSENSTEIN openly than the U.S. ad-
ANDREA RODRIGUEZ ministration about the state
Associated Press of bilateral relations.
HAVANA (AP) — The public Vidal took the reins of the
face of Cuba’s diplomatic U.S. affairs division in 2006,
opening with the United helped negotiate the re-
States is leaving her post establishment of diplo-
to become ambassador to matic relations and stayed
Canada, officials said Sun- through the announce-
day. ment of President Donald
Josefina Vidal was sworn Trump’s new Cuba policy
in to her new role at a cer- last month. The Cuban
emony presided over by government appears to
President Raul Castro, ac- have decided to bring in
cording to Cuban media. new faces to deal with the
Officials said Vidal’s deputy Trump administration, al-
Gustavo Machin would though it did not immedi-
also leave the division of ately say who would take
U.S. affairs to become am- their places.
bassador to Spain. Trump retained most el-
In a government renowned ements of the Obama
for its opacity, Vidal and policy, although he will re-
Machin were given unusual impose limits on individual
rein to talk publicly about Americans’ ability to travel
Cuba’s relations with Wash- to Cuba.
ington. They offered regular Vidal’s counterpart in many
briefings to journalists about aspects of the negotiations
the state of diplomatic ties, was the top U.S. diplomat
which were re-established in Havana, Ambassador
two years ago. Under their Jeffrey DeLaurentis, who
watch, the Cuban govern- left his post this month to re-
ment often spoke more turn to the United States.q