Russian lawyers in June 2016 in New York

Donald Trump’s eldest son, son-in-law and then-campaign chairman met a Russian lawyer shortly after he won the Republican nomination, it emerged yesterday.

Representatives of Donald Trump Jr and Jared Kushner confirmed the June 2016 meeting after the New York Times reported the gathering of the men and Russian lawyer Natalia Veselnitskaya at Trump Tower.

Then-campaign chairman Paul Manafort also attended, according to the statement from Donald Trump Jr.

The encounter appears to be the earliest known private meeting between any key aides to the president and a Russian.

Mr Trump Jr described it as a “short introductory meeting” during which the three discussed a disbanded programme that used to allow US citizens to adopt Russian children.

Russia ended the adoptions in response to American sanctions brought against the nation following the 2009 death of an imprisoned lawyer who spoke about a corruption scandal.

Mr Trump Jr said he invited the other two Americans, was asked to attend by an acquaintance not named in the statement, and was not told beforehand with whom he would meet.

“It was not a campaign issue at that time and there was no follow up,” he said.

Mr Kushner lawyer Jamie Gorelick said her client had already disclosed the meeting in a revised filing of a form that requires him to list meetings with foreign agents.

“Mr Kushner has submitted additionalupdatesandincluded, out of an abundance of caution, this meeting with a Russian person, which he briefly attended at the request of his brother-in-law, Donald Trump Jr. As Mr Kushner has consistently stated, he is eager to cooperate and share what he knows,” she said.

Unlike Mr Kushner, Mr Trump Jr does not serve in the administration and is not required to disclose his foreign contacts. The New York Times reported on Saturday that Mr Manafort disclosed the meeting to congressional investigators questioning his foreign contacts.

Mr Manafort led Mr Trump’s campaign for about five months until August and resigned from the campaign immediately after press reports of his firm’s covert Washington lobbying operation on behalf of Ukraine’s ruling political party. He is one of several people linked to the Trump campaign who are under scrutiny by a special counsel and congressional committees investigating Russian meddling in the 2016 campaign.