The administration of US President Barack Obama is desperately looking for ways to prevent President-elect Donald Trump from cooperating with Russia, says an American analyst.
James Petras, a political commentator based in New York, told Press TV on Wednesday that the recent expansion of US sanctions against Russia was aimed at creating a “conflictual situation” before Trump’s inauguration on January 20.
Ties between Washington and Moscow further soured after the US Treasury Department on Tuesday blacklisted several Russian companies and individuals over their alleged connection to the Ukrainian crisis and the 2014 reunification of the Crimean peninsula with the Russian mainland.
The Treasury said the sanctions were against eight Russian infrastructure, shipping and construction companies that have ties to projects in and near Crimea.
Despite Obama’s animosity towards Russia, his successor has pledged cooperation with Moscow on many…