Qatar Had Dirt On Kushner But Kept It From Mueller To Preserve White House Ties
Jared Kushner Image by Department of Defense
By Aiden Pink March 13, 2018
Officials from Qatar acquired what they said was evidence of illicit influence by the United Arab Emirates on Jared Kushner and other White House figures, but did not share it with special counsel Robert Mueller in order to maintain diplomatic ties, NBC News reported Monday.
Qatar believes that secret meetings between Kushner and leaders from the U.A.E., its regional rival, may have led to Trump’s endorsement of the U.A.E.’s naval blockade of Qatar. The country also believes that Kushner took an anti-Qatar stance after negotiations fell apart between his family business and Qatar investors.
But when the country’s representatives visited Washington in January, they did not share their information with Mueller in order to preserve their country’s relationship with the U.S., three sources told NBC.
Officials from the U.A.E. held internal discussions over how to take advantage of Kushner’s business dealings and diplomatic inexperience in order to improve their ties with the U.S., The Washington Post reported last month.
Kushner has been unable to obtain a permanent security clearance and recently saw his access to top secret documents taken away.
Mueller is looking closely at the actions of top Trump fundraiser Elliott Broidy, The New York Times reported earlier this month. Broidy, who is also on the board of the Republican Jewish Coalition, has business interests in the U.A.E. and sent a memo to an advisor to the Emirati royal family detailing his conversations with Trump, where he said he advocated for pro-Emirati policies.
Broidy has accused Qatar of hacking his emails.
Contact Aiden Pink at pink@forward.com or on Twitter, @aidenpink
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