Kremlin, angry at Syria missile strike, says Putin won't meet Tillerson

[HAPPY2BME]

The Kremlin said on Monday that U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson will not meet President Vladimir Putin when he visits Moscow on Wednesday, a move that could point to tensions over a U.S. missile attack on a Syrian air base last week.

John Kerry, Tillerson's predecessor, often met Putin as well as the Russian foreign minister when he visited Moscow, and Putin granted several audiences to the Texan when he ran oil major Exxon Mobil before taking his current job.

Putin even personally awarded Tillerson a top Russian state award -- the Order of Friendship -- in 2013, and it was widely expected that the former oilman would meet Putin on what is his first trip to Russia as secretary of state.

But Putin's spokesman, Dmitry Peskov, told reporters on Monday that no such meeting was planned, suggesting Tillerson will follow strict diplomatic protocol and only meet his direct counterpart, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov.


http://www.reuters.com/article/us-mideast-crisis-syria-putin-tillerson-idUSKBN17C13K

[Drafe Hoblin]

There never was a scheduled meeting between the two to begin with that I was aware of. 

'Could point to tensions'...  or could not.

Putin 'even' awarded... or Putin awarded? 

or this excerpt:
" John Kerry, Tillerson's predecessor, often met Putin as well as the Russian foreign minister when he visited Moscow.. "  So what, Reuters?  Kerry was unintentionally entertaining to 'them' as a desperate buffoon who was liable to spill all kinds of residual State Department info at any moment, to present himself as a key decision-maker.

Reuters is reaching for a story that isn't there.   

[HAPPY2BME]

Tillerson: The Reign Of The Assad Family Is Coming To An End

Secretary of State Rex Tillerson ​issued a stern warning to Russia on Tuesday: Either stand with the US and other “like-minded” nations against Syria or side with President Bashar al-Assad and his allies Iran and the militant group Hezbollah.

​​”We want to relieve the suffering of the Syrian people. Russia can be a part of that future and play an important role,” Tillerson ​told top diplomats during a meeting in Italy. “Or Russia can maintain its alliance with this group, which we believe is not going to serve Russia’s interests longer-term.”​​

​His comments came hours before he was scheduled to meet with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov in Moscow and days after the US launched a cruise missile strike against a Syrian air base after Assad attacked his citizens with chemical weapons, killing 87 people.

http://nypost.com/2017/04/11/tillerson-the-reign-of-the-assad-family-is-coming-to-an-end/

[HAPPY2BME]

Tillerson: Russia Must Choose Between Assad, US

[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=81N-w2gSfVY[/youtube]