Kushner denies any collusion with Russia
Says he met Russians four times during poll campaign
Washington, July 24: Senior White House adviser Jared Kushner on Monday said he had contacts with Russian officials four times during his father-in-law Donald Trump’s presidential campaign but denied any collusion, hours before facing grilling by senators as part of the probe into alleged Russian meddling in the 2016 election.
In a statement he will submit to investigators, Mr Kushner described contacts during last year’s campaign with Russian ambassador Sergey Kislyak and other Russians as routine.
The sprawling probe has plagued the White House since Donald Trump took office, with many influential members of Mr Trump’s team having failed to report their contacts with Russian officials.
“I did not collude, nor know of anyone else in the campaign who colluded, with any foreign government,” Mr Kushner said in the prepared remarks. “I had no improper contacts. I have not relied on Russian funds to finance my business activities in the private sector.”
The statement was the first time the reticent Mr Kushner publicly explained his contacts with Russian officials.
“I am not a person who has sought the spotlight,” he said. “Because there has been a great deal of conjecture, speculation, and inaccurate information about me, I am grateful for the opportunity to set the record straight.” Mr Kushner was testifying in a closed-door meeting before the Senate intelligence committee on Monday. He was scheduled to appear before the House panel on Tuesday.
In his statement Mr Kushner said the June 2016 meeting with Russian lawyer Natalia Veselnitskaya — which Donald Jr had taken hoping to get dirt on his father’s rival Hillary Clinton — was a “waste of time.” He acknowledged a brief meeting with Kislyak in April 2016, and another during his father-in-law’s transition. “I stated our desire for a fresh start in relations,” he said of the meeting. — AFP
I did not collude, nor know of anyone else in the campaign who colluded, with any foreign government. I had no improper contacts. — JARED KUSHNER, Senior Trump adviser