Trump ‘knew of Flynn’s talks with Russia’
President briefed weeks ago that security adviser had not told truth about calls to Moscow, claims Spicer
DONALD TRUMP was aware that his national security adviser had not told the truth about his interactions with Russia weeks before he was forced to resign, it emerged last night, as Republicans asked the president to explain his relationship with Moscow.
Michael Flynn was forced to leave his post after less than one month after reports that he had failed to brief truthfully Mike Pence, the vice-president, about conversations he had with Moscow’s ambassador in Washington.
Mr Flynn is accused of discussing the lifting of sanctions on Moscow with the Russian ambassador before Mr Trump had taken office, an act that prompted an FBI investigation into whether he had violated US law.
Mr Trump finally asked for Mr Flynn’s resignation on Monday, but Sean Spicer, the White House press secretary, said yesterday that the president was briefed on Jan 26 that Mr Flynn’s account was thought to have been misleading.
The claims seem at odds with Mr Trump’s assertion last week that he was unaware of a news report about Mr Flynn’s actions.
Last night, it was reported that Mr Pence, who had defended Mr Flynn on television, had been “kept in the dark”, and only informed about the situation on Feb 9. He was told around the same time that a Washington Post report was published detailing Mr Flynn’s meeting with the Russian ambassador.
John McCain, the influential Republican senator and chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, has called for a fuller explanation from Mr Trump. “General Flynn’s resignation also raises further questions about the Trump administration’s intentions toward Vladimir Putin’s Russia,” he said.
Leading Democrats demanded an investigation into possible links between the administration and Russia, including whether Mr Trump had any knowledge of the discussions Mr Flynn had on US sanctions with the Kremlin’s ambassador in Washington.
The Flynn affair comes after US intelligence agencies gave consideration to a report by Christopher Steele, a British ex-spy, which suggested that the Kremlin may have information that could be used to blackmail Mr Trump.
Senate intelligence committee leaders are already looking into allegations of links between Russia and the US presidential campaigns – including Mr Trump’s – following reports that Moscow intervened in the 2016 election.
Mr Flynn’s contact with Russia has been described as “potentially illegal” due to the 1799 Logan Act, which bans US citizens from negotiating with countries with which the US is in dispute.
Sally Yates, the then-acting US attorney general, told the White House late last month she believed Mr Flynn had misled them about the nature of his communications with the Russian ambassador, US officials told the Washington Post on Monday.
The FBI interviewed Mr Flynn about the call around the same time, in a revelation that could expose him to criminal charges if it emerges he misled investigators. The Army has also been investigating whether Mr Flynn received money from the Kremlin during a trip to Moscow in 2015, defence officials told the New York Times.
In his resignation letter, Mr Flynn said he held numerous calls with the Russian ambassador to the US during the transition and gave “incomplete information” about them to Mr Pence.