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At the 2017 Senate confirmation hearing, Mr Sullivan spoke out strongly against Russia's interference in the 2016 elections and its aggression towards its leaders. neighbors, such as the annexation of the Crimean peninsula in 2014.
"I think we must react strongly to this intrusion into our democracy," he said. "Any interference in our political processes is simply unacceptable. It is a profound threat to our way of life and we must respond to it as forcefully as possible with all the means at our disposal. "
Russia is not a central part of Sullivan's portfolio, but last month he led a delegation of Trump administration officials to Geneva to meet with his Russian counterpart, Sergei A. Ryabkov, to discuss arms control and other security issues. In December, Sullivan toured Central and Eastern Europe, where he urged authorities on Russia's "destabilizing" and "perverse" activities, according to a state department press release.
As ambassador since October 2017, Mr. Huntsman has been keeping a low profile in Moscow. But he made little, though largely unnecessary, effort to loosen relations between Washington and Moscow before resigning this month. It comes into force on October 3rd.
At a June 28 meeting with Putin at the Group of 20 summit in Osaka, Japan, Mr. Trump spoke warmly of the Russian leader. "We had a very, very good relationship," he said. "Many very positive things will come out of the relationship."
Although the report of the special advocate, Robert S. Mueller III, did not reveal that Mr. Trump's campaign in 2016 was conspiring with the Kremlin, members of both parties of the Congress are determined to maintain severe sanctions against Moscow for its detailed election interference by Mr Mueller and for the annexation of Crimea by Russia.
Sestanovich said Putin's government was frustrated by the persistent hostility to Washington, as well as the mixed signals from Trump's own administration, where Russian hawks had resisted the president's efforts to improve their relationships. He added that the Kremlin would probably be resigned to regroup after the 2020 presidential election and would wait for the rest of Trump's administration, if necessary.
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