U.S. Special Counsel Mueller Is Gathering Evidence That A 2017 Seychelles Meeting Was An Effort To Establish A Back Channel To The Kremlin

Washington Post: Mueller gathers evidence that 2017 Seychelles meeting was effort to establish back channel to Kremlin

Special counsel Robert S. Mueller III has gathered evidence that a secret meeting in Seychelles just before the inauguration of Donald Trump was an effort to establish a back channel between the incoming administration and the Kremlin — apparently contradicting statements made to lawmakers by one of its participants, according to people familiar with the matter.

In January 2017, Erik Prince, the founder of the private security company Blackwater, met with a Russian official close to Russian President Vladi­mir Putin and later described the meeting to congressional investigators as a chance encounter that was not a planned discussion of U.S.-Russia relations.

A witness cooperating with Mueller has told investigators the meeting was set up in advance so that a representative of the Trump transition could meet with an emissary from Moscow to discuss future relations between the countries, according to the people familiar with the matter, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive matters.

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WNU Editor: This story is actually old news. WNU covered it last year ....Was A Trump-Putin Back Channel Established Between The Founder Of Blackwater And A Close Friend of Putin? (April 3, 2017), and in case anyone has forgoten .... there is also a Jared Kushner connection (in this link I explained why back-channels have been an important part of U.S. - Soviet/Russian communications and relations since the Cold War, starting with the Henry Kissinger and Anatoly Dobrynin back channels of the early 1970s) .... Did Jared Kushner Want A Secret Communications Channel With The Kremlin? (May 27, 2017).

So why the interest now? Apparently someone has a different story to tell (Lebanese-American George Nader) that contradicts what Erik Prince said under oath .... Democrats say Trump associate may have misled House panel over Seychelles meeting (CNN). Now Erik Prince has admitted that he met a delegation from the UAE .... but as to his involvement in setting a back-channel .... as I had mentioned last year, he would be the worse person to be involved in setting-up a back-channel for the simple reason being that he is extremely well known. Bottom line. No back-channels were established, and after one year we now have someone who is saying that they were meeting to establish a back-channel. In short .... I have trouble seeing where this story is going.

More News On U.S. Special Counsel Mueller Gathering Evidence On A 2017 Seychelles Meeting That May Have Been An Effort To Establish A Back Channel To The Kremlin

U.S. Special Counsel Probes Seychelles Meeting With Russian: Washington Post -- US News and World Report/Reuters
Mueller evidence shows Blackwater founder held meeting to create Trump-Russia back channel: report -- The Hill
Mueller's Focus on Adviser to Emirates Suggests Broader Investigation -- New York Times
United Arab Emirates adviser with ties to Trump insiders is cooperating with Mueller as he gathers evidence on mysterious Seychelles meeting that 'was set up to establish a back channel to Russia' -- Daily Mail
The secret Seychelles meeting Robert Mueller is zeroing in on, explained -- VOX