Open Secrets: The disturbing timeline of events surrounding the first Trump-Putin meeting
Donald Trump’s secretive meetings with Vladimir Putin are raising new questions about the American president’s ties with Russia in light of two reports issued over the weekend.
The New York Times said on Friday (Jan. 11) that the Federal Bureau of Investigation opened an inquiry in May 2017 to determine whether Trump was actively working for Russia. Meanwhile, the Washington Post reported on Sunday (Jan. 13) that Trump has repeatedly tried to hide the content of his conversations with Putin, including by admonishing his translator not to disclose what was said during a conversation with the Russian president.
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Secret chat
Then, on the evening of July 7, during a formal dinner in Hamburg, Trump walked up to Putin, and the two talked “privately and animatedly” for almost an hour, Ian Bremmer, the head of political risk consultancy Eurasia, said at the time, citing world leaders who had been present at the dinner.
The content of that conversation, which was kept secret for days, is even more opaque than what was said during the scheduled meeting. Besides the two presidents, the only other person present was Putin’s translator.
“Put another way,” Weiss said Monday, “shortly after the New York Times reached out to the White House to ask about a secret meeting with the Russians, Trump himself sought a secret meeting with the Russians.”
More at https://qz.com/1523115/the-disturbing-timeline-of-events-surrounding-the-first-trump-putin-meeting/amp/
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