The eldest son of US President-elect Donald Trump met with a group of politicians, diplomats and businessmen, supporting cooperation between Moscow and Washington on settlement of the Syrian conflict. The meeting was held in Paris in October of this year.
The eldest son of US President-elect Donald Trump, Donald Trump Jr. (Photo: AP / J. Scott Applewhite)
The eldest son of US President-elect Donald Trump, Donald Trump Jr., met with a group of supporters of cooperation between Moscow and Washington on an issue of settlement of the Syrian conflict, the Wall Street Journal newspaper reported.
According to the newspaper, politicians and diplomats from several countries, as well as Syrian oppositionists advocating cooperation with Russia, took part in the meeting.
The Wall Street Journal also noted that the meeting was held in Paris, where the eldest son of the US President-elect participated in an event, organized by the Center of Political and Foreign Affairs in France, in October. According to the newspaper, Donald Trump Jr. held private discussions with diplomats, businessmen and politicians, which were focused on quest of ways of cooperation with the Russian side to resolve the conflict in the Syrian Arab Republic.
The Wall Street Journal believes that this meeting raises new questions about contacts of Donald Trump Sr. and members of his family with foreign powers. As it was noted, the meeting in the French capital once again emphasizes a desire to cooperate with the Kremlin, voiced by Trump Sr.
Damascus-born Randa Kassis is the chairman of the Syrian opposition Movement of the Pluralistic Society, which stands for a political restructuring in Syria, but in cooperation with President Bashar al-Assad, as well as for cooperation with Russia in this process. In an interview with the newspaper, Kassis said that during her conversation with 38-year-old Trump Jr., she pointed to the importance of cooperation with Russia in solving problems of the Middle East.
“We have to be realistic. Who is on the ground in Syria? Not the US, not France,” Kassis said. “Without Russia, we cannot have any solution in Syria.”
The Wall Street Journal also quoted a post, written by Kassis on her Facebook page after the meeting in Paris. Kassis expressed a hope that she managed to convey Trump Sr. a message through his son “about how we can work together” in order to reach an agreement between Russia and the US on Syria.
“[Syria’s] opposition got hope that [the] political process will move forward and Russia and the United States will reach accord on the issue of the Syrian crisis, because of Trump’s victory,” she wrote. “Such hope and belief is the result of my personal meeting with Donald Trump junior in Paris in October.”
A senior adviser to the president-elect, Kellyanne Conway, confirmed that Trump Jr. attended the event. However, Conway tried to downplay the significance of his contact with Randa Kassis.
“Don was addressing a roundtable in Paris, and she was present for that talk and at a group dinner for 30 people,” Conway said, adding that persons, “interested in the election” in the US, attended the event.