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President Trump went on Twitter early Sunday morning to hurt his silence Friday in the New York Times bomb report on a Russian army intelligence unit that awards bonds to militants in Afghanistan to kill U.S. soldiers, even as Democrats harshly criticized Trump’s leadership for failing to respond. .
Citing U.S. intelligence-informed officials, the Times reports that last year, Russia presented and paid coins to Taliban militants for k US coalition forces in Afghanistan (while 20 U.S. infantrymen were killed in Afghanistan in 2019, it is not transparent if some were applicable with the reward.)
Trump changed the stage in March and the White House reportedly repudiated a response, but no action was taken.
On Saturday night, the White House launched a delicately worded reaction that denied that Trump was affected by the matter, adding that it “did not talk about the merits of the alleged information.”
Early on Sunday, Trump denied the scoop on a Twitter feed:
Trump added that “it has been more challenging for Russia than the Trump administration” and claimed that Joe Biden and beyond President Barack Obama allowed Russia to capture quantities of Ukraine.
Trump then revived the specter of the Ukrainian scandal caused his political judgment by asking “Where’s Hunter?” – a connection with Joe Biden’s son Hunter Biden, who served on the board of a Ukrainian domestic fuel comparative block under the Obama administration.
Representatives for the Taliban denied the charges and the Russian embassy said the Times story was filled with “baseless and anonymous accusations”in a message on Twitter.
Russia and the United States have been mired in a so-called shadow war. In 2017, the U.S. intelligence community determined Russia — at the direction of Putin — meddled in the U.S. presidential election and developed “a clear preference for President-elect Trump.” The president has, at times, refused to acknowledge the broad consensus of the U.S. intelligence community, amid persistent allegations he is too friendly towards Putin. In 2018 during a summit in Helsinki, Finland, Trump challenged his own intelligence community’s findings of election interference while flanked by Putin. He later walked back the comments. Earlier this year, intelligence officials warned House lawmakers that Russia interfering in the 2020 campaign to try to get Trump re-elected in 2020. Still, the motivation for paying bounties to Taliban forces to kill U.S. soldiers is not clear. Some officials told the Times Russia could have been seeking retaliation for the 2018 battle in Syria, when American military killed several hundred pro-Syrian forces. It’s also possible Russia was looking to derail the U.S.-Taliban peace talks. The reports come at a precarious time for the Trump administration. The president has been working to hammer out a peace deal with the Taliban to end the long-running Afghanistan war and administration officials told CNN Friday that the Trump administration is nearing a decision to withdraw more than 4,000 troops from Afghanistan by the fall. Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) was one of the few high-profile Republicans to speak out about the New York Times report, saying it’s “imperative” Congress investigate the report and for the “Trump Administration to take such allegations seriously” in a message on Twitter.
On May 8, more than a week after Trump was removed from the bonus report, Trump told reporters that the United States and Russia had a “wonderful friendship.”
“Is there anything Trump probably wouldn’t do for Putin?” wrote the House Foreign Affairs Committee controlled by Democrats on Twitter.
More and more Democrats sounded the alarm about the report Saturday and temporarily criticized Trump for failing to act faster; Senator Tim Kaine (Virginia Democrat) wrote on Twitter that this other exufiant from the president “is approaching Putin.”
Russian espionage unit paid Taliban to attack Americans, to U.S. intelligence (Wall Street Journal)
Russia secretly presented bonds to Afghan militants to kill US troops, intelligence (New York Times)
Russian coalition trooplaystation operation in Afghanistan, intelligence reports (Washington Post)
Report: Russia presented bonds to Taliban militants for k U.S. infantry soldiers and other allies (Forbes)
Trump leadership finalizes plan to withdraw 4,000 trooplaystation from Afghanistan (CNN)
Here’s what happens with the Bidens and Ukraine (Forbes)
I cover national politics for Forbes. Previously, I wrote for TIME, Newsweek, New York Daily News, and VICE News. I also have my own startup, Newsreel, a
I cover national politics for Forbes. Previously, I wrote for TIME, Newsweek, New York Daily News, and VICE News. I also announced the beginning, Newsreel, a political form of political news for a tender audience.
I’m a new York-based journalist covering Forbes’ Lacheck news. I have a master’s degree from Columbia University’s School of Journalism. Previous Bylines:
I’m a new York-based journalist covering Forbes’ Lacheck news. I have a master’s degree from Columbia University’s School of Journalism. Previous bylines: Gotham Gazette, Bklyner, Thrillist, Task – Purpose and xoJane.