WASHINGTON (Sputnik) — US Attorney General Jeff Sessions said during a congressional hearing on Tuesday he had no knowledge of former National Security Adviser Michael Flynn's ties to the government of Turkey.
"I don't believe I had information to that affect," Sessions said when asked whether he was aware that Flynn was working for Turkey when acting as a surrogate for President Donald Trump's campaign.
Sessions also said he had no knowledge of Flynn's dealings with Turkey after the 2016 US presidential election.
Congresswoman Zoe Lofgren also asked whether the attorney general knew anything about Flynn's efforts to extradite political opposition figure Fetullah Gulen. Sessions said he read about it in the US media just recently, but does not recall being briefed on this matter before.
In early March, Flynn registered the Flynn Intel Group, his consulting firm, as required by the Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA) for work on behalf of a firm owned by a Turkish national with links to Turkish institutions.
Shortly after the registration, The Wall Street Journal reported citing former Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) Director James Woolsey that Flynn held talks with Turkey while serving as an adviser to Trump, discussing ways to remove Gulen, who is suspected by Ankara of masterminding the July 2016 coup attempt, from the United States.
Flynn’s spokesman Price Floyd denied the reports saying no such discussion ever occurred.
