'Trump doesn't know what to do' as Putin ignites a diplomatic crisis by holding American 'hostage':

[workinclasszero]

‘Trump doesn’t know what to do’ as Putin ignites a diplomatic crisis by holding American ‘hostage’: former CIA agent

BRENDAN SKWIRE 02 JAN 2019 AT 14:00 ET

CNN intelligence analyst and former CIA operative Bob Baer said on Wednesday that Russia was holding American Paul Whelan hostage, as a ‘furious’ Vladimir Putin exacted revenge for the arrest of convicted Russian spy Maria Butina.

“I think it’s a diplomatic crisis for Trump and this administration,” Baer said after host Brianna Keilar noted the State Department had been “tight-lipped” about the arrest. “Frankly I believe this man is a hostage, and so they are asking themselves ‘why have the Russians at this point taken in an innocent American and holding him as a spy?’ It makes no sense.”

Baer also said he didn’t think Whelan was a spy.

“I know Russian operations and I know they’re run very carefully,” he said. “They do not take contractors, send them to Moscow to commit an act of espionage. It doesn’t happen.”

Keilar noted that Whelan’s arrest came two weeks after Butina pled guilty to conspiring against the United States, and asked if there might be some connection. Baer agreed wholeheartedly.

https://www.rawstory.com/2019/01/trump-doesnt-know-what-to-do-as-putin-ignites-a-diplomatic-crisis-by-holding-american-hostage-former-cia-agent/

[Cha]

1. KR! Good Luck to Paul Whelan!

[spanone]

2. I suspect he's in on it....a swap of Whelan for Butina....problems solved

[dalton99a]

3. +1. It's a prearranged deal.

[spanone]

4. could be. Wow, Bill Browder just mentioned such a possible scenario on msnbc

[uponit7771]

5. Benedict Donald knows what to do, grab his angles, ....like's he's BEEN doing.

[AlexSFCA]

6. one must be blind not seeing that pitin wants butina back

and of course putin wouldnt arrest an actual spy, that wouldn’t be effective. He arrested an ordinary citizen to create maximum pressure.