Jeff Sessions 'did not disclose meetings with Russians on security clearance form'

Attorney General Jeff Sessions talks to President Donald Trump: AP
Attorney General Jeff Sessions talks to President Donald Trump: AP

Attorney General Jeff Sessions reportedly did not disclose meetings he had last year with a Russian official when he applied for his security clearance, according to the Department of Justice.

This new revelation is the latest example of Mr Sessions failing to disclose contacts he had with members of the Russian government.

According to CNN, Mr Sessions – who spoke twice last year with Russian Ambassador Sergey Kislyak, once in the former senator's office – did not note these interactions on his application for security clearance. The form requires the person applying to list "any contact" he or his family had with a "foreign government" or its "representatives" over the past seven years, officials said.

Mr Sessions came under fire earlier this year after the Washington Post reported that he had failed to disclose interactions with Mr Kislyak during his Senate confirmation hearings for attorney general. He had also not disclosed the meetings in an official questionnaire.

One day after the Post published its story, Sessions recused himself from overseeing the FBI's investigation into potential ties between Trump campaign advisers and Russian operatives.

"Let me be clear," Mr Sessions said before announcing his recusal, "I never had meetings with Russian operatives or Russian intermediaries about the Trump campaign."

It is possible that congressional committees, which are also conducting their own Russia probes, could call Mr Sessions to testify about his interactions with Mr Kislyak and his role in the campaign.

Members of Congress have also raised questions about Mr Sessions' role in Donald Trump's decision to fire FBI Director James Comey. The White House first said that the President had acted on the recommendations of Mr Sessions and Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein, despite Mr Sessions recusal from the Russia inquiry. Mr Trump told NBC that he would have dismissed Mr Comey "regardless of recommendation".