Krauthammer: Obama Sanctions on Russia Are ‘Meaningless,’ Trump Is Playing Into What Putin Wants

On Friday’s broadcast of the Fox News Channel’s “Special Report,” columnist Charles Krauthammer argued that President-Elect Donald Trump “has sort of played into” what Vladimir Putin wants, but that President Obama’s sanctions against Russia are “meaningless.”

Krauthammer said [relevant remarks begin around 4:15] that the sanctions and expulsion of diplomats was both about Trump and Putin. He added, “Putin is showing his complete contempt for Obama, the way he kind of laughs it off. He decides that this is so trivial, he isn’t even going to retaliate, which is the normal thing you’d do. … Trump I think has sort of played into it, and by congratulating Putin. But it’s a smart move on the part of the Russians. You put no pressure on Trump. So, you give him the option to drop the sanctions. But this is a complete distraction. These sanctions are meaningless. The only ones that matter, and even those sanctions are not that severe, are the ones that were imposed on Russia because of Ukraine. … Those sanctions are on their last legs.”

Follow Ian Hanchett on Twitter @IanHanchett