US Ambassador to the UN Nikki Haley hits back at White House over new Russia sanctions

United States ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley speaks during a United Nations Security Council meeting at United Nations headquarters, April 14, 2018 in New York City. (Photo by AFP)

US Ambassador to the UN Nikki Haley has hit back at the White House, rejecting a top adviser’s claim that she was confused by saying President Donald Trump would impose new sanctions on Russia.

Haley had told CBS News on Sunday that "Russia sanctions will be coming down,” noting, Treasury “Secretary [Steven] Mnuchin will be announcing those on Monday if he hasn't already.”

However on Monday, the White House denied the imposition of any new sanctions, with its economic adviser Larry Kudlow saying a day after that Haley “got ahead of the curve," and that “there might have been some momentary confusion about that.”

Haley hit back with a stunning statement, saying, “With all due respect, I don’t get confused.”

According to a senior administration official, Trump was "annoyed" at the confusion in what seems to be one of the rare instances in which Haley has drawn the president’s ire.

Sources close to the White House said Trump, who has occasionally been hesitant to forcefully criticize Russia, has been unwilling to move forward with additional sanctions on Moscow.

Kudlow, who was speaking to reporters Tuesday, said that “additional sanctions are under consideration, but not been determined.”

However, the Russian embassy in Washington received a letter from the Trump administration, saying the US had no immediate plans to impose new sanctions on Russia, Interfax cited a diplomatic source.

"I can confirm that the United States has informed the Russian embassy that there will be no new sanctions for now," TASS cited a source in the Russian foreign ministry as saying.

Meanwhile, Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Bob Corker, a Tennessee Republican, called the recent happenings “standard confusion.”

"How many other things do you want to mention have been rolled out that way?" Corker told reporters Tuesday.

"I didn't think much about it. You know, two weeks ago, we're moving out of Syria the next day, and then the next day we weren't. It's just sort of standard confusion."

Trump, who had planned to withdraw US troops out of Syria, later changed his mind and ordered a coordinated attack against the war-ravaged country on Saturday.