Kushner proposed secret communication channel with Moscow: Report
A new US media report has surfaced suggesting that President Donald Trump’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner, had proposed establishing a secret communication channel with Russia ahead of Trump’s inauguration on January 20.
According to the Washington Post, Kushner and Russian Ambassador Sergey Kislyak discussed setting up a secret and secure communications line between Trump’s transition team and the Kremlin.
The claim comes from intercepts of conversations between Russia's ambassador and Moscow by US intelligence agencies.
The US president’s advisor also suggested using Russian diplomatic facilities in the US to protect such a channel from being monitored, American officials briefed on intelligence intercepts told the Post.
The report said the request was made in December at Trump Tower in New York. Kushner "suggested using Russian diplomatic facilities in the United States for the communications," the Post reported.
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In response to the revelation, the Democratic National Committee (DNC) called for Trump to fire Kushner from his position as a senior adviser to the president.
"Trump has no choice but to immediately fire Kushner, whose failure to report this episode on his security clearance is reason enough for a criminal investigation," DNC deputy communications director Adrienne Watson said in a statement.
"The next question is whether the President authorized this, because no one stands between Trump and Kushner on the chain of command.”
Since his victory in the November presidential race, Trump has been accused of being supported by the Kremlin to sway the election in his favor. The New York billionaire, however, rejects allegations of having any ties with Moscow.
Kushner 'should be prosecuted for lying'
Meanwhile, Democratic Representative Ted Lieu said on Friday that Kushner must be prosecuted after a Reuters report on Friday claimed that the president’s son-in-law didn't disclose at least three contacts with Russia's ambassador to the US during and after the 2016 presidential campaign.
"Certification for my SF86 security clearance form," Lieu tweeted alongside a picture of the form. "Which says false statement punishable by imprisonment. Jared Kushner lied on his form."
He added that if this report is true, Kushner has to resign. “He should also be prosecuted for lying on his security clearance form, a federal crime.”
Kushner's lawyer said his client doesn't recall the conversations with the Russian ambassador.
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