MOSCOW (Sputnik) — On February 15, The New York Times reported, citing phone records and intercepted calls, members of Trump’s presidential campaign team and several associates allegedly contacted Russian intelligence and government officials prior to the 2016 US elections. Both Washington and Moscow have repeatedly refuted the allegations.
US presidential press secretary Sean Spicer has connected Pompeo with reporters from The Washington Post and The Wall Street Journal to convince them that the story of The New York Times was not true, the Axios news website reported citing an official in the presidential administration.
The media outlet added that Pompeo was not the only official, who had contacted with the reporters as Senate Select Intelligence Committee Chair Richard Burr and House Intelligence Committee Chair Devin Nunes had also been involved in the talks.
The tensions between Trump and a number of US news outlets has intensified since the inauguration of the politician in January. Earlier in the month, the president slammed "fake news" reports that kept citing anonymous White House sources alleging chaos in his administration as well as contacts with Russian intelligence services.
