Sputnik - National Security Advisor John Bolton has been holding a series of talks in Moscow with senior Russian officials including Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and Russian Security Council Secretary Nikolai Patrushev.




Speaking in�Moscow, Bolton said that Washington's sanctions against�Tehran have had an impact on�the global oil market, and that both Russia and the US would benefit from�US sanctions policy.
Saying that the US has increased its own oil production and exports, Bolton said that Russia too stood to�benefit from�the decline of�Iranian output. "It's true that Russia as�an oil exporter will benefit from�rising oil prices. And we [also] benefit as�oil producers. But in�time, the market will level off," Bolton said, speaking to�Russian radio station Echo Moskvy.


According to�the senior US official, US sanctions against�Iran are aimed at�putting "maximum pressure on�Tehran to�change their behavior."

Commenting on�other issues, including the possibility of�another summit between�Presidents Putin and Trump, Bolton said a one-on-one summit like�the one that took place in�Helsinki earlier this year was possible.

Regarding claims of�Russian meddling in�the US elections, Bolton said he told his Russian counterparts that such meddling, if it took place, was unlikely to�have had any real impact.

As far as�Russian-US arms treaties were concerned, Bolton said that Washington has yet to�finalize its position on�whether to�extend the New START arms control treaty, and still has time to�do so.

Bolton�met�with�his counterpart Nikolai Patrushev on�Monday in�Moscow for�discussions on�issues ranging from�the possible US withdrawal from�the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty (INF) to�Iran, North Korea, Syria, Afghanistan, Ukraine and the fight against�international terrorism, drug-trafficking and illegal migration.
In addition to�Echo Moskvy, Bolton also spoke to�Kommersant, telling the Russian business newspaper that Washington has not yet decided whether it will deploy missiles in�Europe if it goes ahead and withdraws from�the INF Treaty. The US official also complained about�the fact that China, another major nuclear power, is not a party to�the INF Treaty, despite�the fact that between�one third and half of�its ground-based ballistic missiles are in�the short and intermediate range categories proscribed under�the Russian-US treaty.


Calling the INF Treaty an "anomoly," Bolton noted that while the treaty prohibits the deployment of�US ground-based cruise missiles in�Poland, it does not prevent them from�being deployed by�US ships in�the Baltic Sea. At the same time, he complained about�Russia's alleged violations of�the treaty.

On Saturday, President Trump announced that the US was considering withdrawing from�the INF, a landmark 1987 arms treat aimed at�reducing the danger of�nuclear war in�Europe. The announcement prompted Washington's European allies including Germany, France, Italy, and Spain to�voice security concerns, with�Russian officials�warning�that Moscow would do everything necessary to�preserve strategic parity in�case of�a US exit from�the treaty.

President Trump unilaterally withdrew the United States from�the Joint Comprehensive Plan of�Action (JCPOA) Iran nuclear deal in�May, and promised to�introduce several waves of�tough US economic sanctions against�Tehran, including restrictions targeting Iran's energy sector and sanctions penalizing foreign companies doing business with�Iranian energy firms. After the US withdrawal from�the nuclear deal, Russia, China, and the European signatories to�the JCPOA have scrambled to�try to�salvage the treaty. This has included�measures�to�bypass the impending US energy sanctions, set to�go into�effect next month.