Estonian foreign intelligence eavesdropped on Russian official meeting Trump associate

[mainer]

Estonia’s foreign intelligence service, the Information Board (EIB), last year listened in on a meeting in an unnamed eastern European country between an associate of Donald Trump and a pro-Putin member of the Russian State Duma, Newsweek reported on Wednesday.
While Newsweek was unable to say what the purpose of the meeting had been, a “Western intelligence official” was referred to as saying that the surveillance of the meeting was conducted “by or on behalf of” EIB.

Newsweek made the disclosure in an article about Russia's interference in the U.S. presidential campaign and its creating political division in the U.S. The article, which was first brought to the attention of the Estonian media by daily Postimees, said that at one point that Trump’s inexplicable behavior had led top Russian officials to believe he would be forced to withdraw from the race because of his mental state and apparent unsuitability to be president.

In particular, Kremlin officials had feared they could not predict what the impact on Russia would be should Trump step aside. As a result, Moscow decided to stop forwarding documents obtained by its hackers to Wikileaks, which had been disseminating them publicly.

http://news.err.ee/v/news/df22cea3-1c2e-4139-92ea-08f029af9f07/newsweek-estonian-foreign-intelligence-eavesdropped-on-russian-official-meeting-trump-associate

[KittyWampus]

1. Wait. WHUT? Estonia potentially has recordings of a Trump person meeting with a Russian state actor?

The CIA is not able to release info... but it looks like the Baltic region is going to start pushing back and foreign intelligence is stepping into the breach.

[herding cats]

2. This is the pertinent part of the Newsweek article:

that time, according to reports obtained by Western intelligence, a Trump associate met with a pro-Putin member of Russian parliament at a building in Eastern Europe maintained by Rossotrudnichestvo, an agency under the Ministry of Foreign Affairs that is charged with administering language, education and support programs for civilians. While Newsweek could not determine the purpose of the meeting, a Western intelligence official said that surveillance of the meeting was conducted by or on behalf of the Estonian Information Board (EIB), the foreign intelligence service of Estonia. (Last year, EIB advised government leaders that the Russian government posed the greatest near-term danger to the security of Estonia, Lithuania and Latvia. As a result, Trump’s apparent support for Putin during the campaign raised concerns within the Baltic governments that, with a Trump presidency, they would face increased national security threats from Russia.) However, no evidence has emerged that Trump knew of the meeting or was briefed about it afterward.

http://www.newsweek.com/trump-putin-russia-interfered-presidential-election-541302

[NBachers]

3. Americans have been betrayed by their own media, our intelligence services, and the FBI.

Our only hope, at this point, is foreign news and intelligence sources that exist beyond the Red Curtain. Pray that Free World Media continues to penetrate during these dark days in the United States of America.

[NBachers]

5. Yes, and if it wasn't for that, the picture would be way less dismal than it is now.

Why hasn't this been a crucial Democratic issue in the years since the 2000 election?

[uponit7771]

6. +1