Investigators are reportedly looking into why Kushner met with a Putin-linked Russian banker
Thomson Reuters
The Washington Post has previously reported that Sergey Kislyak, Russia's ambassador to the US, told his superiors in Moscow that Kushner proposed a backchannel line of communication between the Trump transition team and the Russian government in December.
Current and former Trump administration officials told The New York Times that they now believe that meeting in December could have been when Kushner tried to reach out to the Russians.
Kislyak facilitated Kushner's meeting with Gorkov, who has not been known to act in a diplomatic capacity for Putin. But the timing of their meeting and Russia's role in interfering with the US election has raised questions.
Former US intelligence officials have told Business Insider's Natasha Bertrand that if Kushner did try to establish a backchannel to Russia without going through the conventional US intelligence paths, it would be "off the map," "explosive," and "extremely dangerous."
National security adviser H.R. McMaster said in a press conference Saturday that the US has backchannels with several countries, suggesting that the matter shouldn't be cause for concern.
Trump campaigned on an openness toward improving relations with Putin, specifically in the areas of counterterrorism and ending the Syrian civil war. Sources close to the administration defended the meetings to the Times, citing those causes.
But the reports of the investigation veering into the meeting between Kushner and Gorkov may suggest that the investigators remain skeptical, or unsatisfied, with the answers the Trump administration has provided. The FBI and separate congressional committees are each conducting investigations into Russia's interference in the 2016 election, as well as whether any Trump associates colluded with Russian officials.
Read the full article at the New York Times here >
- I'm an interior designer. Here are 10 things in your living room you should get rid of.
- A software engineer shares the résumé he's used since college that got him a $500,000 job at Meta — plus offers at TikTok and LinkedIn
- A 101-year-old woman keeps getting mistaken for a baby on flights and says it's because American Airlines' booking system can't handle her age
- The Role of AI in Journalism
- 10 incredible Indian destinations for family summer holidays in 2024
- 7 scenic Indian villages perfect for May escapes
- Paneer snacks you can prepare in 30 minutes
- Markets crash: Investors' wealth erodes by ₹2.25 lakh crore
- Nothing Phone (2a) blue edition launched
- JNK India IPO allotment date
- JioCinema New Plans
- Realme Narzo 70 Launched
- Apple Let Loose event
- Elon Musk Apology
- RIL cash flows
- Charlie Munger
- Feedbank IPO allotment
- Tata IPO allotment
- Most generous retirement plans
- Broadcom lays off
- Cibil Score vs Cibil Report
- Birla and Bajaj in top Richest
- Nestle Sept 2023 report
- India Equity Market