MOSCOW (Sputnik) — During his address at the Atlantic Council Distinguished Leadership Awards 2017 on Monday, Pence listed Russia and Iran, as well as the threat of global terrorism, as the primary security issues for the alliance, while also reiterating the commitment of the United States to its allies.
"Now we see we should not wait for a quality improvement of relations with the United States compared to the administration of [former US President Barack] Obama," Slutsky said.
Deputy Chair of State Duma's International Affairs Committee Alexei Chepa told Sputnik in turn that such a statement was not unexpected, but added that it is too early to draw conclusions, as US President Donald Trump’s administration's policy was not yet fully formed, clear or consistent.
Chepa added that instead of the world focusing on the fight against terrorism and uniting its efforts to tackle this comment threat as was needed, "some short-sighted politicians make such statements."
Russia has repeatedly refuted the claims of being involved in the Ukrainian crisis, stating that NATO’s military build-up near the Russian borders is provocative and could lead to regional and global destabilization.
