President Trump’s administration missed a legal deadline for a second round of sanctions pursuant to Russia’s use of a chemical weapon in a high-profile assassination attempt this year, a top Republican complained Tuesday.
“It is unacceptable that the administration lacks a plan — or even a timeline — for action on the second round of mandatory sanctions required by U.S. law,” retiring House Foreign Affairs Chairman Ed Royce said as the deadline passed.
Secretary of State Mike Pompeo’s team concluded in August that Russia had provoked punitive sanctions under U.S. law, due to the use of a chemical weapon to try to kill a former dole agent living in southern England. That same law, the Chemical and Biological Weapons and Warfare Elimination Act of 1991, grants a 90-day window in which Russia — which denies the charges — could abandon such weapons and invite international inspectors to prove it had done so. But the State Department “could not certify” Russian compliance with that law.
“The Department is consulting with Congress regarding next steps as required 90 days after the initial determination on August 6, 2018,” State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert told the Washington Examiner in a statement. “We intend to proceed in accordance with the terms of the CBW Act, which directs the implementation of additional sanctions.”
The State Department interprets the law to set a deadline for beginning such consultations, not for imposing the sanctions. “There is no timeline associated with these consultations,” Nauert’s deputy, Robert Palladino, told reporters last week.
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Trump team misses deadline for new round of Russia sanctions https://t.co/vhFGpUik1E
— Washington Examiner (@dcexaminer) November 7, 2018
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