The political wildfire between two superpowers continues to spread
For those who hoped diplomatic relations between two nuclear powers, Russia and the US, would get better under Donald Trump, there has been no such luck.
Russian President Vladimir Putin, in a tit-for-tat political move, has announced that 755 staff must leave diplomatic missions in the federation as a retaliation for increased US sanctions against the Kremlin.
The sanctions, approved by Congress, were ordered as a response to alleged Russian interfering in America’s 2016 election and for its annexation of Crimea from Ukraine in 2014.
Moscow pushed for the exile of hundreds of US diplomats on Friday, but has now confirmed the number who must leave by 1 September. Cutting staff by 755 will leave 455 US officials in Russia, the same amount as Russian counterparts currently working in the US.
A US State Department official said of Russia’s decision: ‘This is a regrettable and uncalled for act. We are assessing the impact of such a limitation and how we will respond to it.’
It seems not a day goes by now when the relationship between Russia and the US hasn’t hit the headlines. American intelligence bodies strongly suspect that Moscow attempted to swing last year’s election in favour of Trump, an allegation that both parties vehemently deny.
On the eve of Trump's inauguration to The White House, posters and banners were flung in support of the billionaire property mogul across Russia. Both Putin and Trump hoped for warmer ties between the two superpowers, but tensions have escalated over continued speculation about campaign collusion.
In December of last year, former president Barack Obama ordered the expulsion of 35 Russian diplomats and the seizure of two property compounds as punishment for election meddling. At the time, Moscow, surprisingly, did not take action against the decision, reportedly because the prospect of a Trump administration would see the bill reversed. But this hasn’t happened.
And while Trump’s desire to have a working relationship with Putin signifies a shift in bilateral collaboration between the countries, particularly since the Obama-era, convincing fellow politicians in the US to take the same approach has proven difficult. The Senate voted overwhelmingly on Thursday to pass the bill increasing sanctions against Russia.