From the Liveblog of
Tuesday, February 12, 2019
Pompeo says Putin threatening democracies worldwide
US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo warns that Russian President Vladimir Putin posed a threat to democracies worldwide, as he arrived in Slovakia, which is the latest stop on a Central European charm offensive aimed at curbing the growing influence of both Moscow and Beijing.
“Vladimir Putin is intent on undermining democracies throughout the world, make no mistake about it. We should be very candid about that,” Pompeo tells journalism students in the capital Bratislava.
He also warns about the “need to guard against China’s economic and other efforts to create dependence and manipulate your political system.”
Pompeo is seeking to highlight the US role in the fall of communism three decades ago at a time when Putin finds a widening audience in the former Eastern bloc.
— AFP
The Times of Israel Community.