US Special Counsel Robert Mueller is reportedly preparing to seek an interview with President Donald Trump as part of his ongoing investigation into the alleged Russian meddling in the 2016 White House race.
Mueller, the former FBI director who served under both Presidents George W Bush and Barack Obama, raised the interview possibility during a meeting with Trump’s legal team in late December, according to several media accounts.
However, there have been “no substantive talks or active negotiations yet” about a potential interview with the President, CNN reported, citing sources, adding both sides are expected to explore the matter further in future meetings.
Even so, the very indication that Mueller is contemplating an interview with President Trump contrasts with the impressions of some key Trump aides till recently that Mueller was in the process of wrapping up his probe.
Trump has vociferously and repeatedly denied any collusion between his campaign and the Russians, despite the investigation leading to indictment in recent months of four of his campaign aides, two of whom have pleaded guilty to certain charges and agreed to cooperate.
There was no immediate comment from the White House on the subject. But The New York Times, citing a person close to the president, reported that Mueller’s team could conduct the interview “on some limited portion of questions, possibly within next several weeks”. Stating that the matter is “moving faster than anyone really realizes”, the person is credited with the view that Trump is comfortable participating in an interview and believes it would put to rest questions about whether his campaign coordinated with Russia in the 2016 election, the report said.