U.S. expels 60 Russian diplomats, closes Seattle consulate Presented by Northrop Grumman

With Eli Okun, Connor O’Brien and Jacqueline Klimas

BREAKING THIS MORNING — THE U.S. EXPELS 60 RUSSIAN DIPLOMATS, CLOSES SEATTLE CONSULATE, via The Associated Press: “The Trump administration expelled 60 Russian diplomats on Monday and ordered Russia’s consulate in Seattle to close, as the United States and European nations sought to jointly punish Moscow for its alleged role in poisoning an ex-spy in Britain.


“Senior Trump administration officials said all 60 Russians were spies working in the U.S. under diplomatic cover, including a dozen at Russia’s mission to the United Nations. The officials said the administration was taking the action to send a message to Russia’s leaders about the “unacceptably high” number of Russian intelligence operatives in the U.S

“The expelled Russians will have seven days to leave the U.S, said the officials. They weren’t authorized to be identified by name and requested anonymity. They added that the Seattle consulate is a counter-intelligence concern because of its proximity to a U.S. Navy base.”

VA’S SHULKIN OUT NEXT, reports the AP: “President Donald Trump is planning to oust embattled Veterans Affairs Secretary David Shulkin amid an extraordinary rebellion at the agency and damaging government investigations into his alleged spending abuses, three administration officials told The Associated Press on Sunday.

“Two officials said an announcement on Shulkin could happen this week, subject to Trump’s final decision as the White House hones in on possible replacements to head the Department of Veterans Affairs. One of the officials rated Shulkin’s chances of being pushed out in the next day or two at ‘50-50.’ The three officials demanded anonymity to discuss a sensitive personnel matter.

Trump, who spent the weekend at his Mar-a-Lago estate, told associates that he would keep two other administration officials who had been under fire: White House chief of staff John F. Kelly and Housing Secretary Ben Carson.”

Among the candidates being vetted to replace Shulkin, according to the AP: “Fox & Friends” contributor Pete Hegseth, a former military officer and former CEO of the conservative Concerned Veterans for America; former Rep. Jeff Miller (R-Fla.), who had been chairman of the House Veterans Affairs Committee; retired Army Lt. Gen. Keith Kellogg; Michael Kussman, a former VA undersecretary of health; Toby Cosgrove, a former president and CEO of the Cleveland Clinic; and Leo Mackay Jr., a former VA deputy secretary who is now senior vice president at Lockheed Martin.

EGYPT'S SISI LOOKS FOR LEGITIMACY IN THIS WEEK’S VOTE, writes the AP: “This week’s presidential election in Egypt is not about who wins — that was settled long ago — but about how many people bother to cast ballots.

“Authorities hope that enough people will vote for President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi to lend legitimacy to an election in which the only other candidate is an obscure politician who has made no effort to challenge him...

“A number of other presidential hopefuls stepped forward earlier this year, including some who might have attracted a sizable protest vote. But they were all either arrested or pressured to withdraw, making this the least competitive election since the 2011 uprising raised hopes of democratic change.”

The election has begun, reports the AP.

Meanwhile, Alexandria’s security chief is targeted in a bomb attack over the weekend, The Wall Street Journal adds.

BOLTON URGES LIBYA-STYLE DENUCLEARIZATION FOR NORTH KOREA, via Reuters: “John Bolton, U.S. President Donald Trump’s new national security adviser, said Trump should insist that any meeting he holds with North Korea’s leader must be focused squarely on how to eliminate that country’s nuclear weapons program as quickly as possible.

“Bolton, a hawk who Trump named on Thursday to replace H.R. McMaster in the key security role, told Radio Free Asia on Monday that discussions at the proposed summit with Kim Jong Un should be similar to those that led to components of Libya’s nuclear program being shipped to the United States in 2004.

“‘Let’s have this conversation by May, or even before that, and let’s see how serious North Korea really is,’ Bolton said, according to a transcript of his remarks posted on the RFA website on Friday.”

North Korea agrees to hold summit-preparation talks on Thursday, South Korea authorities say via Reuters.

And, in Japan, former President Barack Obama says North Korea’s isolation minimizes leverage that can be used against it, the AP adds.

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MD TRIVIA: Beth Rossman was the first to recount that the Republic of Yemen was created on May 22, 1990 when the People's Democratic Republic of Yemen was united with the Yemen Arab Republic.

Check back Friday for this week’s question.

TRUMP MOVES TO BAN MOST TRANSGENDER TROOPS, report POLITICO’s Jacqueline Klimas and Bryan Bender: “President Donald Trump on Friday issued orders to ban transgender troops who require surgery or significant medical treatment from serving in the military except in select cases — following through on a controversial pledge last year that has been under review by the Pentagon and is being fought out in the courts.

“The memorandum, which drew swift condemnation from gender rights groups, states that while the secretary of defense and other executive branch officials will have some latitude in implementing the policy, ‘persons with a history or diagnosis of gender dysphoria — including individuals who the policies state may require substantial medical treatment, including medications and surgery — are disqualified from military service except under limited circumstances.’”

MATTIS AND KELLY TALK TRUMP OUT OF ANOTHER GOVERNMENT SHUTDOWN, write POLITICO’s Elana Schor, Burgess Everett, Rachael Bade and Matthew Nussbaum: “For a few hours Friday, Washington peered over the brink.

“President Donald Trump had stunned even his closest advisers earlier in the day by tweeting that he was ‘considering a VETO’ of a $1.3 trillion spending package H.R. 1625 (115) ...

“Defense Secretary Jim Mattis and Chief of Staff John Kelly were key in convincing Trump not to veto the legislation, according to a source familiar with conversations between congressional leaders and the president.”

Touting the benefits of the bill, Trump singled out money designated for nuclear modernization.

“We’re spending a lot of money on nuclear, our nuclear systems to upgrade and in some cases brand-new whether it's submarines, nuclear submarines and others,” the president said. “So, we'll have by far the most powerful nuclear force on Earth, and it will be absolutely in perfect shape and condition.”

It comes as the U.S. nuclear arsenal, in Trump’s first year, shrank to its smallest size since early 1956, The Washington Post writes.

And the A-10 Warthog gets new wings in the deal signed by Trump, reports Defense News. Rep. Martha McSally (R-Ariz.), a member of the House Armed Services Committee, had championed the provision.

FIRST LOOK — HOUSE DEMS OPPOSE TRUMP'S NUCLEAR BLUEPRINT: A slew of House Democrats are voicing opposition to the Trump administration's new Nuclear Posture Review. In a letter to the president, lawmakers criticized the nuclear blueprint's approach, including new weapons like a lower-yield submarine-launched nuclear missile, as costly and destabilizing.

"Calling for the addition of new weapons and weapons capabilities to our arsenal and expanding the role of nuclear weapons and U.S. national security strategy imposes significant economic burdens and undermines decades of United States leadership to prevent the use and spread of nuclear weapons," the lawmakers write.

The letter was organized by Reps. Earl Blumenauer of Oregon, Barbara Lee of California and Mike Quigley of Illinois and was signed by 43 lawmakers, including HASC ranking Democrat Adam Smith of Washington state.

AIR FORCE EYES FOUR STATES FOR F-35 UNIT, reports the AP: “Military bases in Arizona, Florida and Missouri are being studied by the Air Force along with one in Texas already identified as the preferred location for basing an Air Force Reserve squadron of 24 F-35 fighters.

“A notice published Wednesday in the Federal Register says Naval Air Station Fort Worth Joint Reserve Base is the preferred alternative and that the ‘reasonable alternatives’ being studied for environmental suitability are Davis-Monthan Air Force Base in Arizona, Homestead Air Force Base in Florida and Whiteman Air Force Base in Missouri.”

MCCAIN SEEKS TORTURE INFO FROM CIA NOMINEE, via our colleague Connor O’Brien: “Senate Armed Services Chairman John McCain is asking President Donald Trump's new choice to lead the CIA, Gina Haspel, to provide Congress with details on her role in harsh interrogation tactics employed against suspected terrorists.

“In a letter to Haspel, now the CIA's deputy director, McCain asked her to provide an account of her role in the agency's interrogation and detention program from 2001 to 2009, including any role at so-called black sites and whether she ever oversaw, directed or was in a position to stop ‘enhanced interrogation techniques.’”

WAR REPORT — SAUDIS CLAIM TO INTERCEPT MISSILES FROM YEMEN, reports The New York Times: “Saudi Arabia said its air defenses destroyed seven ballistic missiles late Sunday, fired from neighboring Yemen and targeting at least four Saudi cities including the capital, Riyadh.

“The reported barrage was said to have been launched by Houthi insurgents in Yemen, the Arab world’s poorest country. If confirmed, it would be one of the rebels’ most audacious assaults on Saudi Arabia since the kingdom began bombing Houthi targets in Yemen exactly three years ago...

“At least one civilian, described by Al Arabiya as an Egyptian national, was said to have died in the missile attack.”

And roadside bombs disguised as rocks in Yemen bear similarities to others used by Hezbollah in southern Lebanon and by insurgents in Iraq and Bahrain, suggesting Iranian influence, the AP adds.

— RUSSIA REJECTS CHARGES OF AIDING THE TALIBAN, via Reuters: “Russia has rejected comments by NATO’s top commander in Afghanistan that it has been supporting and even supplying weapons to the Taliban, in a clash of words that underlines growing tension over Moscow’s involvement in the conflict.

“In an interview with the BBC last week, General John Nicholson said that Russia had been acting to undermine U.S. efforts in Afghanistan despite shared interests in fighting terrorism and narcotics, with indications that Moscow was providing financial support and even arms...

“A statement from the Russian embassy in Kabul dismissed the comments as ‘idle gossip’, repeating previous denials by Russian officials.”

But as Russia reportedly returns to aid the Taliban in Afghanistan, one Soviet army veteran never left, writes the NYT.

Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. Joseph Dunford says he can see progress in the Afghan war, via the AP.

Afghans will soon fly missions with Blackhawk helicopters from the U.S., the AP adds.

Meanwhile, at least one dies in a suicide attack on a Shi’a mosque in Herat, Reuters reports.

Another suicide attack in Afghanistan kills at least 14 at a wrestling match, reports the NYT.

And here’s the story of a Dubai shopping trip and a missed chance to capture the head of the Taliban, via The Washington Post.

— GHANA VOTES TO HOST THE U.S. MILITARY, Reuters reports: “Ghana’s parliament on Friday night ratified a deal granting ‘unimpeded’ access to the United States to deploy troops and military equipment in the West African nation in a vote boycotted by the opposition, legislators said.

“The Ghana-U.S. Military Cooperation agreement requires Ghana to provide unimpeded access to agreed facilities and areas to U.S. forces, their contractors and other related services.”

Meanwhile, the House Intelligence Committee will investigate China’s efforts to gain military and economic power in Africa, Committee Chairman Devin Nunes (R-Calif.) said on “Sunday Morning Futures with Maria Bartiromo,” via Reuters.

Militants linked to al-Qaeda unleash deadly car bombings in Somalia, writes the NYT.

Nigeria is talking to Boko Haram about a possible ceasefire, Reuters writes.

And the U.S. strikes an al-Qaeda target in southern Libya, expanding its shadow war there, adds the NYT.

SPEED READ

— ‘America First’ bears a new threat: military force: NYT

— Mattis holds firm as chaos engulfs Trump’s national security team: Bloomberg

— The NSA hits Capitol Hill to quell leak concerns: POLITICO Pro

— Two former national officials worry about Trump’s newly announced national security adviser, John Bolton: Bloomberg

— Hillary Clinton's former top national security aide calls Bolton "a dangerous new element in the Trump national security apparatus": The Global POLITICO

— Bolton and Secretary of State pick Mike Pompeo could mark a turning point: The Washington Post

— And Sen. Tim Kaine (D-Va.) questions whether Bolton can get a security clearance: POLITICO

— Former Israeli Defense Minister Shaul Mofaz claims Bolton urged him to attack Iran: The Jerusalem Post

— Turkey’s military offensive moves into Iraq: Reuters

— Hundreds more Syrian rebels leave the Damascus suburbs: AP

— An emerging German-Dutch naval tie-up has the shipbuilding industry abuzz: Defense News

— The Air Force turns to the private sector for space rockets: SpaceNews

— When Michigan State University launched a CIA front operation in Vietnam: POLITICO Magazine

— Russia discusses building another bridge to North Korea: The Washington Post

— A Syrian army defector explains how the government keeps winning: NPR

— Veterans convicted of combat crimes seek Trump’s pardon: Fox News

— China's air force drills again in the South China Sea and the Western Pacific: Reuters

— The U.S. showcases its stealth fighter training on an amphibious carrier: Reuters

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