Former US Ambassador to the UN Samantha Power has published a tweet suggesting that recently deceased Senator John McCain wanted to send "a parting message" to Russian President Vladimir Putin and his American counterpart Donald Trump via his funeral ceremony.
Power claimed that the senator had specifically requested that Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko and NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg be seated beside each other during the ceremony to indicate to Trump and Putin that the US "stands with its friends and allies."
Surely no coincidence that #JohnMCain — who planned every detail of today’s memorial — invited Ukraine’s President @poroshenko & seared him beside @jensstoltenberg, head of NATO. A parting message to Vladimir Putin & @realDonaldTrump: America stands with our friends & allies.
— Samantha Power (@SamanthaJPower) September 1, 2018
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Republican Senator John McCain passed away on August 26 soon after stopping his treatment for brain cancer, citing declining effectiveness due to the aggressive nature of the illness and old age. He was known for his tough stance towards Russia and harsh criticism of Putin, supporting lethal arms supplies to Ukraine. McCain was also opposed to many of Trump's policies, even organizing resistance against his attempts to scrap Obamacare.