Carter Page, former foreign policy adviser to the Trump campaign testified before Congress, revealing that last year he traveled to Russia where he met with Russia’s Deputy Prime Minister Arkady Dvorkovich.
“It was a very brief interaction. It was some nice pleasantries. I cannot recall the precise words I said, but it was sort of best wishes, and, you know, that’s about it,” Page said.
The transcript of his six-hour testimony before the House Intelligence Committee revealed that senior Trump campaign members, including Attorney General Jeff Sessions, were informed about the trip which Page made in July 2016, and suggests he might have had interactions with other Russian government officials as well. Page previously denied meeting with Dvorkovich and other Russian officials.
Page’s testimony and his claim that Sessions knew about the trip to Russia could raise suspicions over Sessions’ knowledge regarding collusion between the Trump campaign and Russians.
The testimony he gave under oath was part of the probe the committee is conducting to determine Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election. The former advisor’s trip had been raising questions from the beginning of the investigation in the summer of 2016.
Page was previously interviewed by the FBI, but his accounts about interactions with government officials in Russia were contradictory. He insisted, just as he did before, that the trip was not connected to the campaign in any way, but was personal. However, during his visit to Moscow Page gave a speech and the committee unveiled an email which shows Page had written to campaign officials, asking how “you’d prefer me to focus these remarks,” referring to the speech.
During the interview, Page maintained he had no information relating to possible Russian interference with the election, and insisted that in Moscow he was not approached by anyone who might have had any intentions to influence the election. Page repeatedly pointed out he had no direct contact with President Trump, nor a relationship with the Russian government, but admitted he may have spoken with several Russian government officials over the years.
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