Climate change skepticism and denial

Russia on Dec. 28 promised retaliation against Washington in the event of new economic sanctions. 
"To be honest, we are tired of lie about the 'Russian hackers,' which is being poured down in the United States from the very top," Reuters quoted Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova as saying. 

President-elect Donald Trump does not have any problem admitting that he disagrees with many polices of the current Obama administration. The UN resolution against Israel or the relations with Russia are just two such examples.

AP Photo/ Jae C. Hong

BELGRADE - US President-elect Donald Trump stepped up his criticism of the UN after a resolution condemning Israel over West Bank settlements passed in the Security Council, with the US abstaining. Trump, who takes office in three weeks, called for a veto.

U.S. President Barack Obama said in an interview broadcast on Dec. 26 that he would have won most Americans' support if he had been able to run against Donald Trump for a third term. 

U.S. President-elect Donald Trump called for an expansion of the United States' nuclear capabilities on Dec. 22, to which Russian President Vladimir Putin said there was "nothing unusual" in these statements. 

U.S. President-elect Donald Trump called the attacks this week in Berlin and Ankara "terrible" on Dec. 21 and said he has been proven to be correct about his plans to impose curbs on Muslims immigrating to the United States. 

A fierce argument took place in the social media realm between Bill Clinton and Donald Trump. The former POTUS wrote on his Twitter account that President-elect Donald Trump “doesn’t know much” but that “one thing he does know is how to get angry, white men to vote for him.” He added that Trump called him after his victory and he was “strangely cordial”.

The dollar charged to a 14-year high and government bond yields rose sharply on Dec. 15 after the Federal Reserve hiked U.S. interest rates and signaled more would follow at a faster pace next year.

European shares made solid progress as bank stocks jumped over 2.5 percent on the prospect of a boost to their lending profits, but the main action was elsewhere.

U.S. President Barack Obama will make his case directly to President-elect Donald Trump not to derail the recent U.S.-Cuba detente, the White House said on Dec. 13, insisting that "turning back the clock" would be damaging to American interests and the Cuban people. 

U.S. President-elect Donald Trump on Dec. 13 tapped ExxonMobil chief Rex Tillerson, an oilman with deep ties to Russia, as his nominee to be secretary of state, promising that the CEO, who is personal friends with Vladimir Putin, has "second to none" relationships with world leaders.