Trump comes out with fresh criticism of Russian inquiry

Washington, Oct 30: US President Donald Trump expressed renewed frustration over the investigations into alleged ties between his campaign associates and Russian government officials, saying on Twitter that the “facts are pouring out” about links to Russia by his former presidential opponent, Hillary Clinton.

“DO SOMETHING!” Mr Trump urged in one of five morning tweets. Mr Trump’s tweets followed a CNN report late on Friday that a federal grand jury in Washington has approved the first charges in a criminal investigation into Russia ties led by special counsel Robert Mueller.

The Associated Press has not confirmed the CNN report. Ty Cobb, a member of Mr Trump’s legal team, said the president was not referring to CNN’s reporting. “Contrary to what many have suggested, the president's comments are unrelated to the activities of the special counsel, with whom he continues to cooperate,” Mr Cobb said in a statement. Mr Trump and the White House insist there was no collusion between his presidential campaign and Russia.

Both have pointed a finger at Clinton and have suggested that the real story of collusion with Russia is the sale of uranium to Moscow when Clinton was secretary of state. The US intelligence agencies have concluded that Russia interfered with the election to benefit Trump, a finding that Trump has not fully accepted.

Mueller and Congress are looking into allegations of ties between Trump associates and Russia. In the tweets, Trump referenced the fact that Clinton's presidential campaign helped fund political research into Trump that ultimately produced a dossier of allegations about his ties to Russia.