Russian-American lobbyist met with Trump Jr., Russian lawyer: NBC News(Reuters) - A lobbyist who was once a Soviet counter-intelligence officer participated last year in a meeting with senior aides to U.S. President Donald Trump, including his eldest son, and a Russian lawyer, NBC News reported on Friday, adding to allegations of possible connections between Moscow and the November election. NBC News, which did not identify the Russian-American lobbyist, said some U.S. officials suspected him of still having ties to Russian intelligence, something he denied to the network.  The Associated Press said the lobbyist, whom it identified as Rinat Akhmetshin, confirmed that he had attended the June 2016 meeting in New York’s Trump Tower. A source familiar with the participants of the meeting confirmed to Reuters that Akhmetshin was in the room. The meeting appears to be the most tangible evidence of a connection between Trump’s election campaign and Russia, a subject that has prompted investigations by congressional committees and a federal special counsel. Trump’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner, and former campaign adviser Paul Manafort were also at the meeting, which the president’s eldest son, Donald Trump Jr., agreed to attend because he believed he could get damaging information about Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton. Trump Jr. did not mention Akhmetshin’s presence when he released a series of emails about the meeting earlier this week. Representative Adam Schiff, the top Democrat on the House of Representatives Intelligence Committee, said the report about Akhmetshin “if accurate, adds another deeply disturbing fact about this secret meeting.” Akhmetshin was not available for comment on Friday. There was no answer at the door of his house in Washington. The White House had no immediate comment about the NBC News report of a Russian-American lobbyist at the meeting. Kushner’s spokesman did not immediately respond to a request for comment, and Manafort’s spokesman Jason Maloni said Manafort had no comment on the meeting. A former Trump campaign adviser, Michael Caputo, told reporters after he testified to the House Intelligence Committee in closed session on Friday that he had no contact with Russians and never heard of anyone in the campaign “talking with Russians.”     Accusations by U.S. intelligence agencies that Moscow meddled in the election and colluded with the Trump campaign have dominated the Republican president’s first months in office. Russia denies the allegations, and Trump says there was no collusion. The agencies said earlier this year that Russia sought to help Trump win the election by hacking private emails from Democratic Party officials and disseminating false information online. To help the White House deal with Russia-related investigations, Trump is hiring veteran Washington lawyer Ty Cobb, a source familiar with the matter said on Friday. Cobb’s role is separate from Trump’s outside legal team, led by New York lawyer Marc Kasowitz.  Akhmetshin has been accused in federal and state courts in the United States of engaging in hacking conspiracies, although the allegations were later withdrawn, according to court records.  In 2015, lawyers for the Russian mining company International Mineral Resources claimed in the U.S. District Court of the District of Columbia that Akhmetshin helped organize the hack, theft and dissemination of private documents. That case was dropped. The same company filed a lawsuit against Akhmetshin in the New York Supreme Court but withdrew it last year.  U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley described Akhmetshin in a letter to the Justice Department in March as “a former member of the Russian military intelligence services (GRU)” who was working to overturn the 2012 “Magnitsky Act” of Congress, which blacklists Russians for human rights abuses. The Kremlin has often complained about the act.     Congressional records show that Akhmetshin lobbied Congress last year for the Human Rights Accountability Global Initiative Foundation, a Washington-based advocacy group that says it is working to lift laws that prevent U.S. residents from adopting Russian children. Those laws were put in place by Moscow in response to the Magnitsky Act. Trump told Reuters on Wednesday that he did not know about his son’s meeting last year until recently. But in a conversation with reporters later that day, Trump said: “In fact, maybe (the meeting) was mentioned at some point,” adding that he was not told it was about Clinton.    Trump Jr.’s lawyer, Alan Futerfas, said he had talked with a person who came to the meeting between Russian lawyer Natalia Veselnitskaya and Trump aides.       “He told me specifically he was not working for the Russian government, and in fact laughed when I asked him that question,” Futerfas told NBC News. It was not immediately clear if the person he referred to was Akhmetshin. The lawyer said Trump Jr. knew nothing about the man’s background at the time of the meeting. The Russian lawyer in the meeting, Veselnitskaya, has said she was not working for Russian authorities, but she told The Wall Street Journal in an interview on Friday that she was meeting with Russian authorities regularly. She said she shared information about a U.S.-born fund manager who lobbied for passage of the Magnitsky Act with the Russian prosecutor general’s office, including with Prosecutor General Yuri Chaika, a top official appointed by the Kremlin, the Journal said.  politicsNews
lobbyist met trump russian lawyer nbc news reuters a lobbyist soviet officer participated last year meeting senior aides president donald trump including eldest son russian lawyer nbc news reported friday adding allegations possible connections moscow november election nbc news identify lobbyist said officials suspected still ties russian intelligence something denied network the associated press said lobbyist identified right akhmetshin confirmed attended june meeting new york trump tower a source familiar participants meeting confirmed reuters akhmetshin room the meeting appears tangible evidence connection trump election campaign russia subject prompted investigations congressional committees federal special counsel trump jared pusher former campaign adviser paul manafort also meeting president eldest son donald trump agreed attend believed could get damaging information democratic presidential candidate hillary clinton trump mention akhmetshin presence released series emails meeting earlier week representative adam chief top democrat house representatives intelligence committee said report akhmetshin accurate adds another deeply disturbing fact secret akhmetshin available comment friday there answer door house washington the white house immediate comment nbc news report lobbyist meeting pusher spokesman immediately respond request comment manafort spokesman jason malone said manafort comment meeting a former trump campaign adviser michael auto told reporters testified house intelligence committee closed session friday contact russian never heard anyone campaign talking accusations intelligence agencies moscow muddled election collided trump campaign dominated republican president first months office russia denies allegations trump says collusion the agencies said earlier year russia sought help trump win election hacking private emails democratic party officials disseminating false information online to help white house deal investigations trump hiring veteran washington lawyer ty cbb source familiar matter said friday cbb role separate trump outside legal team led new york lawyer marc kasowitz akhmetshin accused federal state courts united states engaging hacking conspiracies although allegations later withdrawn according court records in lawyers russian mining company international mineral resources claimed district court district columbia akhmetshin helped organize hack theft dissemination private documents that case dropped the company filed lawsuit akhmetshin new york supreme court withdrew last year senate judiciary committee chairman chuck grasses described akhmetshin letter justice department march former member russian military intelligence services ru working overturn magnitsky act congress blacklist russian human rights abuses the kremlin often complained act congressional records show akhmetshin lobbied congress last year human rights accountability global initiative foundation advocacy group says working lift laws prevent residents adopting russian children those laws put place moscow response magnitsky act trump told reuters wednesday know son meeting last year recently but conversation reporters later day trump said in fact maybe meeting mentioned point adding told clinton trump lawyer alan futerfas said talked person came meeting russian lawyer natalie veselnitskaya trump aides he told specifically working russian government fact laughed i asked question futerfas told nbc news it immediately clear person referred akhmetshin the lawyer said trump knew nothing man background time meeting the russian lawyer meeting veselnitskaya said working russian authorities told the wall street journal interview friday meeting russian authorities regularly she said shared information fund manager lobbied passage magnitsky act russian prosecutor general office including prosecutor general yuri chain top official appointed kremlin journal said politicsnews
Your task is to classify the provided input as real or fake news. Label 0 is meant for fake news, Label 1 is for real news. TEXT: Russian-American lobbyist met with Trump Jr., Russian lawyer: NBC News(Reuters) - A lobbyist who was once a Soviet counter-intelligence officer participated last year in a meeting with senior aides to U.S. President Donald Trump, including his eldest son, and a Russian lawyer, NBC News reported on Friday, adding to allegations of possible connections between Moscow and the November election. NBC News, which did not identify the Russian-American lobbyist, said some U.S. officials suspected him of still having ties to Russian intelligence, something he denied to the network.  The Associated Press said the lobbyist, whom it identified as Rinat Akhmetshin, confirmed that he had attended the June 2016 meeting in New York’s Trump Tower. A source familiar with the participants of the meeting confirmed to Reuters that Akhmetshin was in the room. The meeting appears to be the most tangible evidence of a connection between Trump’s election campaign and Russia, a subject that has prompted investigations by congressional committees and a federal special counsel. Trump’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner, and former campaign adviser Paul Manafort were also at the meeting, which the president’s eldest son, Donald Trump Jr., agreed to attend because he believed he could get damaging information about Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton. Trump Jr. did not mention Akhmetshin’s presence when he released a series of emails about the meeting earlier this week. Representative Adam Schiff, the top Democrat on the House of Representatives Intelligence Committee, said the report about Akhmetshin “if accurate, adds another deeply disturbing fact about this secret meeting.” Akhmetshin was not available for comment on Friday. There was no answer at the door of his house in Washington. The White House had no immediate comment about the NBC News report of a Russian-American lobbyist at the meeting. Kushner’s spokesman did not immediately respond to a request for comment, and Manafort’s spokesman Jason Maloni said Manafort had no comment on the meeting. A former Trump campaign adviser, Michael Caputo, told reporters after he testified to the House Intelligence Committee in closed session on Friday that he had no contact with Russians and never heard of anyone in the campaign “talking with Russians.”     Accusations by U.S. intelligence agencies that Moscow meddled in the election and colluded with the Trump campaign have dominated the Republican president’s first months in office. Russia denies the allegations, and Trump says there was no collusion. The agencies said earlier this year that Russia sought to help Trump win the election by hacking private emails from Democratic Party officials and disseminating false information online. To help the White House deal with Russia-related investigations, Trump is hiring veteran Washington lawyer Ty Cobb, a source familiar with the matter said on Friday. Cobb’s role is separate from Trump’s outside legal team, led by New York lawyer Marc Kasowitz.  Akhmetshin has been accused in federal and state courts in the United States of engaging in hacking conspiracies, although the allegations were later withdrawn, according to court records.  In 2015, lawyers for the Russian mining company International Mineral Resources claimed in the U.S. District Court of the District of Columbia that Akhmetshin helped organize the hack, theft and dissemination of private documents. That case was dropped. The same company filed a lawsuit against Akhmetshin in the New York Supreme Court but withdrew it last year.  U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley described Akhmetshin in a letter to the Justice Department in March as “a former member of the Russian military intelligence services (GRU)” who was working to overturn the 2012 “Magnitsky Act” of Congress, which blacklists Russians for human rights abuses. The Kremlin has often complained about the act.     Congressional records show that Akhmetshin lobbied Congress last year for the Human Rights Accountability Global Initiative Foundation, a Washington-based advocacy group that says it is working to lift laws that prevent U.S. residents from adopting Russian children. Those laws were put in place by Moscow in response to the Magnitsky Act. Trump told Reuters on Wednesday that he did not know about his son’s meeting last year until recently. But in a conversation with reporters later that day, Trump said: “In fact, maybe (the meeting) was mentioned at some point,” adding that he was not told it was about Clinton.    Trump Jr.’s lawyer, Alan Futerfas, said he had talked with a person who came to the meeting between Russian lawyer Natalia Veselnitskaya and Trump aides.       “He told me specifically he was not working for the Russian government, and in fact laughed when I asked him that question,” Futerfas told NBC News. It was not immediately clear if the person he referred to was Akhmetshin. The lawyer said Trump Jr. knew nothing about the man’s background at the time of the meeting. The Russian lawyer in the meeting, Veselnitskaya, has said she was not working for Russian authorities, but she told The Wall Street Journal in an interview on Friday that she was meeting with Russian authorities regularly. She said she shared information about a U.S.-born fund manager who lobbied for passage of the Magnitsky Act with the Russian prosecutor general’s office, including with Prosecutor General Yuri Chaika, a top official appointed by the Kremlin, the Journal said.  politicsNews
Your task is to classify the provided input as real or fake news. Label 0 is meant for fake news, Label 1 is for real news. TEXT: lobbyist met trump russian lawyer nbc news reuters a lobbyist soviet officer participated last year meeting senior aides president donald trump including eldest son russian lawyer nbc news reported friday adding allegations possible connections moscow november election nbc news identify lobbyist said officials suspected still ties russian intelligence something denied network the associated press said lobbyist identified right akhmetshin confirmed attended june meeting new york trump tower a source familiar participants meeting confirmed reuters akhmetshin room the meeting appears tangible evidence connection trump election campaign russia subject prompted investigations congressional committees federal special counsel trump jared pusher former campaign adviser paul manafort also meeting president eldest son donald trump agreed attend believed could get damaging information democratic presidential candidate hillary clinton trump mention akhmetshin presence released series emails meeting earlier week representative adam chief top democrat house representatives intelligence committee said report akhmetshin accurate adds another deeply disturbing fact secret akhmetshin available comment friday there answer door house washington the white house immediate comment nbc news report lobbyist meeting pusher spokesman immediately respond request comment manafort spokesman jason malone said manafort comment meeting a former trump campaign adviser michael auto told reporters testified house intelligence committee closed session friday contact russian never heard anyone campaign talking accusations intelligence agencies moscow muddled election collided trump campaign dominated republican president first months office russia denies allegations trump says collusion the agencies said earlier year russia sought help trump win election hacking private emails democratic party officials disseminating false information online to help white house deal investigations trump hiring veteran washington lawyer ty cbb source familiar matter said friday cbb role separate trump outside legal team led new york lawyer marc kasowitz akhmetshin accused federal state courts united states engaging hacking conspiracies although allegations later withdrawn according court records in lawyers russian mining company international mineral resources claimed district court district columbia akhmetshin helped organize hack theft dissemination private documents that case dropped the company filed lawsuit akhmetshin new york supreme court withdrew last year senate judiciary committee chairman chuck grasses described akhmetshin letter justice department march former member russian military intelligence services ru working overturn magnitsky act congress blacklist russian human rights abuses the kremlin often complained act congressional records show akhmetshin lobbied congress last year human rights accountability global initiative foundation advocacy group says working lift laws prevent residents adopting russian children those laws put place moscow response magnitsky act trump told reuters wednesday know son meeting last year recently but conversation reporters later day trump said in fact maybe meeting mentioned point adding told clinton trump lawyer alan futerfas said talked person came meeting russian lawyer natalie veselnitskaya trump aides he told specifically working russian government fact laughed i asked question futerfas told nbc news it immediately clear person referred akhmetshin the lawyer said trump knew nothing man background time meeting the russian lawyer meeting veselnitskaya said working russian authorities told the wall street journal interview friday meeting russian authorities regularly she said shared information fund manager lobbied passage magnitsky act russian prosecutor general office including prosecutor general yuri chain top official appointed kremlin journal said politicsnews