Waivers for Iran civilian nuclear work extended
The Trump administration on Friday renewed five of seven sanction waivers that allow Russia and European nations to conduct civilian nuclear cooperation with Iran but revoked the other two as it steps up pressure on Tehran, the State Department said.
Secretary of State Mike Pompeo extended the waivers, which were due to expire Saturday, for 90 days, shorter than the usual 180 days. The waivers permit work at Iranian nuclear sites to continue without U.S. penalties.
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump and Russia’s Vladimir Putin discussed what Trump again dismissed as the Russia hoax in their first known phone call since the release of special counsel Robert Mueller’s report on Russian meddling during the 2016 election campaign.
Putin chuckled about Mueller’s conclusions, Trump said.
During their conversation on Friday, which the White House and Kremlin said lasted more than an hour, they also discussed a possible three-party arms control pact with China, North Korea’s nuclear weapons program, Ukraine and the crisis in Venezuela, where Moscow is propping up the current government over the U.s.-backed opposition.
“We had a good conversation about many things,” Trump told reporters in the Oval Office.
Trump said the two leaders were considering a new nuclear agreement “where we make less and they make less. And maybe even where we get rid of some of the tremendous firepower that we have right now.” He said that they had discussed the possibility of including China in the deal and that China “very much would like to be a part of ” it.
White House press secretary Sarah Sanders later said Trump didn’t tell Putin not to meddle in the 2020 election because he’s made that clear in the past.
“He doesn’t need to do that every two seconds,” she said.
Trump tweeted after the call that the two had discussed the “Russian Hoax” among other topics.
“As I have always said, long before the Witch Hunt started, getting along with Russia, China, and everyone is a good thing, not a bad thing,” he wrote.
Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer slammed Trump for failing to press Putin on the report’s “extensive evidence that Russia hacked our elections,” saying that “Trump’s priorities are appalling and undermine democracy.”
A Kremlin readout of the call said the two presidents confirmed their mutual desire “to intensify dialogue in various fields, including on issues of strategic stability.” But it gave no details about a possible arms deal.
Trump said the two also spoke extensively about North Korea’s nuclear weapons program. North Korean leader Kim Jong Un traveled to Russia last week to meet with Putin.
Sanders said Trump told Putin it was important for Russia to continue to help put pressure on North Korea to denuclearize.