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Former White House national security adviser Michael Flynn, who vigorously campaigned for now US President Donald Trump, pleaded guilty on Friday to lying to the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) about reaching out to Russia on Trump's behalf.
Flynn's plea to a single felony count of false statement made him the first official of Trump's White House staff to be charged in the criminal investigation led by Special Counsel Robert Muller.
According to the court document, "Flynn did willfully and knowingly make materially false, fictitious, and fraudulent statements" to the FBI regarding his contact with Russian Ambassador Sergey Kislyak.
On Friday, Flynn issued a statement, saying: "I recognize that the actions I acknowledged in court today were wrong, and, through my faith in God, I am working to set things right. My guilty plea and agreement to cooperate with the Special Counsel’s Office reflects a decision I made in the best interests of my family and of our country. I accept full responsibility for my actions."
Flynn apparently asked Kislyak to "delay the vote on or defeat a pending United Nations Security Council resolution" on December 22 last year about Israeli settlements on occupied Palestinian territories. It has also emerged that the Russian ambassador did respond and actually informed him about Moscow's decision to support the resolution, in contradiction to what Flynn had previously testified.
Flynn also initially denied requesting from the Russian ambassador on December 29, 2016 to refrain from ratcheting up tensions after the Obama administration imposed new sanctions on Russia for alleged interference in the 2016 presidential elections. Flynn originally claimed that he was unaware Russia had decided to moderate its retaliatory response. Both statements now appear to have been false.
Key events in Flynn’s case:
Here is how events unfolded according to court documents:
Muller’s investigation
Flynn's guilty plea follows the announcement of three charges against other Trump campaign officials: former campaign manager Paul Manafort, his business associate Rick Gates and former campaign foreign policy adviser George Papadopoulos.
Papadopoulos was the first one to plead guilty, while Manafort and Gates pleaded not guilty.
US District Judge Rudolph Contreras accepted Flynn's plea and noted that he would face up to five years in prison and a fine of 250,000 US dollars.
However, punishment could be lessened "if and only if" Flynn can assist "in the prosecution of another person." In that case, the former national security adviser could either avoid prison time or face six months behind bars and pay a fine of 9,500 US dollars or even less.
Now, the attention shifts to the "very senior official of the Presidential Transition Team" mentioned in the documents.
No specific names have been mentioned, although speculation is swarming around Jared Kushner, Trump's son-in-law.
The White House Lawyer, Ty Robby, was quick to say, "Nothing about the guilty plea or the charge implicates anyone other than Mr. Flynn."
Responses to Flynn's guilty plea
Instead of issuing a direct comment, former FBI Director James Comey, who was at the helm of the federal bureau when the agency was investigating Flynn before being removed by Trump, posted a biblical message.
Flynn's confessions have unleashed a torrent of reaction in the US.
"My hope is that General Flynn will tell everything he knows and tell why he was having these contacts with Russians, who directed these contacts. I think it goes well beyond the fact that he just lied to the FBI," said Sen. Mark Warner.
"The guilty plea of President Trump’s former National Security Adviser to lying to the FBI about his communications with Russian authorities marks a dark moment in our nation’s history," noted House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi in a statement.
(CGTN)
