Kremlin Dismisses Report of Trump Campaign’s Contact with Russian Intelligence

February 15, 2017, 10:14 AM UTC
Donald Trump Speaks With Russian Leader Vladimir Putin From The White House
WASHINGTON, DC - JANUARY 28: President Donald Trump speaks on the phone with Russian President Vladimir Putin in the Oval Office of the White House, January 28, 2017 in Washington, DC. Also pictured, from left, White House Chief of Staff Reince Priebus, Vice President Mike Pence, and White House Chief Strategist Steve Bannon. On Saturday, President Trump is making several phone calls with world leaders from Japan, Germany, Russia, France and Australia. (Photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Images)
Drew Angerer/Getty Images

The Kremlin said on Wednesday an American media report, which said members of Donald Trump’s presidential campaign had contacts with Russian intelligence officials, was not based on any facts.

The New York Times, citing four current and former U.S. officials, reported on Tuesday that phone records and intercepted calls show that members of Trump’s campaign and other Trump associates had repeated contacts with senior Russian intelligence officials in the year before the election.

“Let’s not believe anonymous information,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told a conference call with reporters, noting that the newspaper’s sources were unnamed.

“It’s a newspaper report which is not based on any facts.”

Peskov, responding to a White House statement saying Trump expected Russia to return Crimea to Ukraine, also said the Kremlin had no intention of discussing its territorial integrity with foreign partners.