WASHINGTON (AP) – A foreign policy adviser to Donald Trump’s presidential campaign met with a Russian intelligence operative in 2013 and provided him documents about the energy industry, according to court filings.
The Russian, Victor Podobnyy, was one of three men charged in connection with a Cold War-style Russian spy ring. According to the court documents, Podobnyy tried to recruit Carter Page, an energy consultant working in New York at the time, as an intelligence source. Page is referred to in the filing as “Male-1.”
Page briefly served as a foreign policy adviser to Trump’s campaign, though he split from the campaign before the election and the White House says the president has no relationship with him. He’s among the Trump associates under scrutiny as the FBI and congressional committees investigate Russian interference in the 2016 election and possible ties between the Trump campaign and Russia.
When contacted Monday by The Associated Press, Page said he was not available for comment. He confirmed to BuzzFeed News, which first reported on the filings, that he was “Male-1.”
Trump has vigorously denied that he or his associates were in contact with Russia during the election. He’s blasted the focus on his possible Russia ties as a “ruse” and has insisted that the real story is the leaking of information to the media and allegations that he and his associates were improperly surveilled by the Obama administration.