Spicer brands Russia ‘an island’ over Syria policy, ignores other nations with same stance (VIDEO)
White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer branded Iran a failed stated and declared Russia “an island” as he discussed the Syrian conflict during an interview with Newseum in Washington DC, Wednesday.
Spicer confidently declared,“right now Russia is an island – it’s Russia, Iran, North Korea and Syria and Russia is the only non-failed state” during the live-streamed interview with NBC News anchor, Greta Van Susteren.
READ MORE: Sean Spicer forgets Holocaust, claims Hitler did not use chemical weapons in WWII (VIDEO)
The slight went unnoticed by Van Susteren but Twitter users were quick to highlight that once again Spicer had shown his ignorance of global affairs.
Spicer repeats assertion that Iran is a failed state at Newseum
— Justin Sink (@justinsink) April 12, 2017
Sean Spicer said Iran was a failed state alright bro you need to slow down on the pronouncements today
— Zaid Jilani (@ZaidJilani) April 11, 2017
‘Failed state’ is a term used by various political organisations and commentators to describe a state in which the basic conditions and responsibilities of a sovereign government no longer function properly, however the metrics used to determine ‘state failure’ vary.
Social media users also pointed out that Spicer incorrectly stated that the three countries were the only ones which did not support the US position in Syria.
READ MORE: Bolivia mercilessly trolls US over Iraq WMD lie in front of UN Security Council (VIDEO)
Spicer told Van Susteren that the US and Russia have a “shared interest not only in defeating ISIS but in stability in the region,” but claimed Russia is “isolating” itself by allying with Syrian President Bashar Assad.
He also said that the US has a shared interest with China in ensuring that “we don’t have a nuclear North Korea.”
@PressSec speaking w/ @greta@Newseum "there's change in how U.S. interests being pursued" with respect to NK, "China plays important role."
— Kimberly Halkett (@KimberlyHalkett) April 12, 2017
Sean Spicer, at Newseum forum, seems not to know if North Korea has nukes. After yesterday, bad timing for him to have to talk at length,
— Mark Jacob (@MarkJacob16) April 12, 2017
Commenting on Trump’s popularity, Spicer described the president as “authentic” and “that is something that has been missing from Washington.” He also played down tensions with the media saying that “as long as we have a healthy and robust media, I’m fine.”
However, Spicer stood by the Trump administration’s decision to skip the White House Correspondents dinner on April 29, which is traditionally attended by the sitting president: “I don’t think we should fake it .. I think they should go have their dinner.. but I don’t think that just sitting there and watching a bunch of celebrities walk by is somehow an indication of how much you respect the press or the first amendment.”
Spicer began the interview by apologizing and asking for “forgiveness” for claiming on Tuesday that Hitler did not use chemical weapons in World War II. “I made a mistake, I got into a topic I shouldn't have and I screwed up,” he said.
"I would ask for folks' forgiveness. I should not have tried to make a comparison. There is no comparing atrocities." #TrumpandthePress
— Newseum (@Newseum) April 12, 2017