Senator Paul to meet Russian deputy foreign minister August 6: Ifax
MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov will meet U.S. Senator Rand Paul in Moscow on Aug. 6, Interfax news agency cited a diplomatic source as saying on Thursday.
FILE PHOTO: Senator Rand Paul (R-KY) walks from Senate Republican weekly policy luncheon on Capitol Hill in Washington, U.S., March 6, 2018. REUTERS/Joshua Roberts
The Republican senator is due to lead a U.S. delegation to the Russian capital and to meet members of the Russian parliament, Russian agencies cited a senior lawmaker as saying earlier on Thursday.
It would be the second U.S. Republican congressional trip to Moscow within several weeks. A delegation of senators and House members led by Republican Richard Shelby traveled there in early July.
Aides to Paul did not respond to a request for comment and no further information about his trip, including who else might be in the delegation, was available.
Paul was one of President Donald Trump’s strongest Washington supporters last month after Trump was roundly criticized, including by members of their own Republican Party, for meeting one-on-one with Russian President Vladimir Putin and failing to denounce Russia for meddling in the 2016 U.S. election.
Paul published an opinion column in Politico on July 16, the day of the Helsinki summit, arguing that Trump was right to meet with Putin. He also said then that he would be traveling to Russia seeking “to discuss common ground with their leaders and help prevent further, unnecessary escalation of tensions.”
Generally a non-interventionist on foreign policy matters, Paul has said repeatedly that he believes it is a good idea for the United States to speak to its adversaries rather than rush toward conflict.
Like Trump, he has expressed skepticism about U.S. intelligence agencies, which concluded that Russia sought to interfere in the election two years ago to boost Trump’s chances of defeating the Democratic nominee, Hillary Clinton.
Reporting by Maxim Rodionov, additional reporting by Patricia Zengerle in Washington; Writing by Tom Balmforth; Editing by Alison Williams and Steve Orlofsky
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