White House notifies Russia that no new sanctions are coming: report

The White House assured the Russian Embassy in Washington on Wednesday that there are no plans to slap additional sanctions on Moscow, the Russian state-run TASS news agency reported.

But a State Department official disputed that report, telling The Hill that new sanctions are, in fact, still under consideration. 

A White House spokesperson not immediately respond to The Hill’s request for comment. The Russian Embassy also did not return a message from The Hill.

{mosads}

Nikki Haley, the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, told CBS’s “Face the Nation” on Sunday that President Trump planned to hit Russia with a new round of sanctions for supporting Syrian President Bashar Assad’s chemical weapons program.

But the White House was quick to refute Haley’s claim. Trump was reportedly angered by Haley’s suggestion of new sanctions, according to The New York Times, and White House economic adviser Larry Kudlow said regarding the remark by the U.N. ambassador, “There might have been some momentary confusion.”

Haley responded to Kudlow’s suggestion on Tuesday, insisting that she doesn’t “get confused.”

Kudlow later told The New York Times that he was wrong to say that Haley was confused, and that he had called her to apologize for his remarks. 

Still, the spat between Haley and the White House highlighted a sense of confusion in an administration that has seen a particularly high rate of turnover, especially in recent weeks.

CIA Director Mike Pompeo is still awaiting confirmation to become the next secretary of State, leaving the State Department without a permanent leader. And the National Security Council has seen the departure of several top officials in recent weeks, after John Bolton took over as Trump’s national security adviser.