Trump aides were in touch with senior Russian officials during presidential campaign

Washington D.C. [U.S.], Feb. 16 (ANI): High-level advisers close to then-presidential nominee Donald Trump were in constant communication during the campaign with Russians known to US intelligence. The CNN reported this development quoting multiple current and former intelligence, law enforcement and administration officials. Trump and former President Barack Obama were both briefed on details of the communications between suspected Russian operatives and those associated with the Trump campaign and the Trump business, according to US officials familiar with the matter. The communications were intercepted during routine intelligence collection targeting Russian officials and other Russian nationals known to US intelligence. Among several senior Trump advisers regularly communicating with Russian nationals were then-campaign chairman Paul Manafort and then-adviser Michael Flynn. Adding to US investigators' concerns, were the intercepted communications between Russian officials before and after the election discussing their belief that they had special access to Trump, two law enforcement officials tell CNN. However, Trump dismissed the claims that his advisers had close ties to Russia in a tweet Wednesday. "This Russian connection non-sense is merely an attempt to cover-up the many mistakes made in Hillary Clinton's losing campaign," Trump tweeted. Meanwhile, the FBI and U.S. intelligence agencies continue to try to determine what the motive for the communications was. (ANI)