Author: Babken Chilingarian

Weekly
update

17 MARCH 2018

CNN reports, that “President Donald Trump announced
Tuesday that he has fired Secretary of State Rex Tillerson and will nominate
CIA Director Mike Pompeo to succeed him, replacing his top diplomat ahead of a
potential high-stakes sitdown between the US President and North Korean leader
Kim Jong Un.”

Tillerson
extended his gratitude to the American people, his State Department staff and
the nation's extensive network of diplomats in his farewell statement on March
13. CNN further
reports, that “Trump has wanted Pompeo as his secretary of state for months.”
President told reporters that he and Pompeo are "on the same
wavelength" and "the relationship has always been very good and that
is what I need."

He
also tweeted about his
decision: “Mike Pompeo, Director of the CIA, will become our new Secretary of
State. He will do a fantastic job! Thank you to Rex Tillerson for his service!
Gina Haspel will become the new Director of the CIA, and the first woman so
chosen. Congratulations to all!”

Gina Haspel, the newly
nominated first-ever female director of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA),
is a career intelligence officer with more than 30 years' experience. She ran a
prison in Thailand, the so-called "black sites", where suspected
al-Qaeda members were tortured by waterboarding in 2002.

On March 4
Russian spy Sergei Skripal and
his daughter were deliberately poisoned by a nerve agent, named Novichok, developed by
Vil Mirzoyanov who called it “a weapon of mass murder.” Mrs May said Russia is "culpable" for
the attack and she expelled 23 Russian
diplomats. As The New York Times reports,
“she vowed to crack down on Russian spies, corrupt elites and ill-gotten wealth
in Britain.”

U.S. Senator
John McCain, Chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, released the
following statementon the poisoning
of former Russian spy Sergei Skripal and his daughter Yulia in Salisbury,
England:

“As we hope for
the recovery of Sergei and Yulia Skripal, we must recognize the brutal reality:
whether in the shadow of the Kremlin or in a peaceful town in the English
countryside, Putin will not hesitate to engage in state-sponsored assassination
and endanger the lives of innocent bystanders. He must not be allowed to treat
the United Kingdom or any other nation as a venue for political murder. The
precedent set by inaction would be disastrous.

The United
States and all of Britain’s allies must stand firmly alongside the United
Kingdom and be prepared to take resolute and appropriate steps to hold Russian
authorities accountable for this outrageous crime – a crime that demonstrates
so perfectly Putin’s contempt for the sovereignty of a free people.” 

Shortly after
that, a statement followed
from the United States, France, Germany, and the United Kingdom on the attack
in Salisbury: “We, the leaders of France, Germany,
the United States and the United Kingdom, abhor the attack that took place
against Sergei and Yulia Skripal in Salisbury, United Kingdom, on March 4,
2018. A British police officer who was also exposed in the attack remains
seriously ill, and the lives of many innocent British citizens have been
threatened. We express our sympathies to them all, and our admiration for the
United Kingdom police and emergency services for their courageous response.
This use of a military-grade nerve agent, of a type developed by Russia,
constitutes the first offensive use of a nerve agent in Europe since the Second
World War. It is an assault on the United Kingdom’s sovereignty and any such
use by a state party is a clear violation of the Chemical Weapons Convention
and a breach of international law. It threatens the security of us all. The
United Kingdom thoroughly briefed its allies that it was highly likely that
Russia was responsible for the attack. We share the United Kingdom’s assessment
that there is no plausible alternative explanation, and note that Russia´s
failure to address the legitimate request by the government of the United
Kingdom further underlines Russia’s responsibility. We call on Russia to
address all questions related to the attack in Salisbury. Russia should, in
particular, provide full and complete disclosure of the Novichok program to the
Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW). Our concerns are
also heightened against the background of a pattern of earlier irresponsible
Russian behavior. We call on Russia to live up to its responsibilities as
a member of the U.N. Security Council to uphold international peace and
security.”

On March 15 the
U.S. Department of the Treasury imposed new sanctions on Russia. “The
Administration is confronting and countering malign Russian cyber activity,
including their attempted interference in U.S. elections, destructive
cyber-attacks, and intrusions targeting critical infrastructure,” said Treasury
Secretary Steven T. Mnuchin.  “These targeted sanctions are a part of a
broader effort to address the ongoing nefarious attacks emanating from
Russia.  Treasury intends to impose additional CAATSA (Countering
America’s Adversaries Through Sanctions Act) sanctions, informed by our
intelligence community, to hold Russian government officials and oligarchs
accountable for their destabilizing activities by severing their access to the
U.S. financial system.”

Today’s action
counters Russia’s continuing destabilizing activities, ranging from
interference in the 2016 U.S. election to conducting destructive cyber-attacks,
including the NotPetya attack, a cyber-attack attributed to the Russian
military on February 15, 2018 in statements released by the White House and the
British Government.  This cyber-attack was the most destructive and costly
cyber-attack in history.  The attack resulted in billions of dollars in
damage across Europe, Asia, and the United States, and significantly disrupted
global shipping, trade, and the production of medicines.  Additionally,
several hospitals in the United States were unable to create electronic records
for more than a week.

Since at least
March 2016, Russian government cyber actors have also targeted U.S. government
entities and multiple U.S. critical infrastructure sectors, including the
energy, nuclear, commercial facilities, water, aviation, and critical
manufacturing sectors.  Indicators of compromise, and technical details on
the tactics, techniques, and procedures, are provided in the recent technical
alert issued by the Department of Homeland Security and Federal Bureau of
Investigation.

In addition to
countering Russia’s malign cyber activity, Treasury continues to pressure
Russia for its ongoing efforts to destabilize Ukraine, occupy Crimea, meddle in
elections, as well as for its endemic corruption and human rights
abuses. The recent use of a military-grade nerve agent in an attempt to
murder two UK citizens further demonstrates the reckless and irresponsible
conduct of its government. To date, this Administration has sanctioned more
than 100 individuals and entities under our Ukraine and Russia-related
sanctions authorities, including 21 individuals, nine entities, and 12
subsidiaries that are owned 50 percent or more by previously sanctioned Russian
companies on January 26, 2018.  These sanctions are in addition to other
ongoing efforts by Treasury to address destabilizing activity emanating from
within Russia, including our sanctioning of Russians targeted for activities
related to the North Korea sanctions program, the Global Magnitsky program, and
the Sergei Magnitsky Act.

As a result of
today’s action, all property and interests in property of the designated
persons subject to U.S. jurisdiction are blocked, and U.S. persons are
generally prohibited from engaging in transactions with them.”

Sanctions
include the designation of three entities and 13 individuals pursuant to E.O.
(Executive Order) 13694, as amended, which targets malicious cyber actors,
including those involved in interfering with election processes or
institutions. Sanctions also include the designation of two entities and six
individuals pursuant to section 224 of CAATSA, which targets cyber actors
operating on behalf of the Russian government — Federal Security Service (FSB)
and Main Intelligence Directorate (GRU).

Prepared by Marina Muradyan