Moscow Seeks Clarity in Trump's Stance on Sanctions

Moscow is seeking clarity from the Trump administration on the issue of anti-Russian sanctions following a string of contradictory statements from White House officials.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) — The Kremlin seeks clarity from the administration of US President Donald Trump on its revised stance in support of US Congressional sanctions, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Monday.

"As for the administration in Washington's position on sanctions issues, we have heard certain adjustments, and we will patiently wait for this position to be formulated unambiguously," Peskov told reporters a day after Trump's spokeswoman said his administration was "supportive of being tough on Russia."

On Sunday, newly appointed White House Communications Chief Anthony Scaramucci apologized for saying that Trump had not decided yet on the issue of anti-Russia sanctions. His initial comment, made earlier in the day, was followed by a statement from the new White House press secretary, Sarah Huckabee Sanders, who said that the US president supports new sanctions.

On Saturday, the text of the sanctions bill targeting Russia, Iran and North Korea was published on the website of the Congress. The voting in the House of Representatives will reportedly take place on Tuesday. In particular, the bill views Russia's Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline project as a threat to energy security of Ukraine and the European Union and suggests providing US allies with financial aid to counter alleged Russian influence and possible cyberattacks by Russian hackers. On Sunday, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told Sputnik that Moscow viewed the bill negatively.