Trump submits answers to Mueller in Russia probe
US President's lawyer says they answered every question focused on Russia
WASHINGTON: US President Donald Trump has submitted written answers to questions from Special Counsel Robert Mueller in his probe of Russian meddling in the 2016 election and possible collusion with the campaign, Mr Trump's lawyer Rudy Giuliani said.
"We answered every question they asked that was legitimately pre-election and focused on Russia," Mr Giuliani said in an interview.
"Nothing post-election. And we've told them we're not going to do that."
He said Mr Trump did not plan to answer any questions from Mr Mueller on whether he tried to obstruct the investigation once he won office, such as by firing former Federal Bureau of Investigation director James Comey.
"It is time to bring this inquiry to a conclusion," Mr Giuliani said in a statement earlier on Tuesday announcing that Mr Trump's answers had been submitted in the probe, which Mr Trump has repeatedly called a "witch hunt".
Mr Trump signed the submission on Tuesday before he left Washington to spend the Thanksgiving holiday in Florida, a source said.
A spokesman for Mr Mueller, who was appointed special counsel in May 2017, declined to comment.
Mr Mueller was tasked to probe "any matters that arose or may arise directly from the investigation" into possible collusion between Mr Trump's campaign and Russia during the 2016 election.
US intelligence agencies have concluded that Russia interfered in the 2016 presidential election to try to tip it towards Mr Trump by undermining Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton.
Among the topics Mr Trump answered questions about on Tuesday was a June 2016 meeting between his son Donald Trump Jr, other members of his campaign team and a group of Russians, the source said.
Mr Trump has denied knowing about the Trump Tower meeting with the Russians, who had promised damaging information about Democratic rival Hillary Clinton.
WIKILEAKS
Other questions may have touched on WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange and Mr Roger Stone, a long-time Trump ally with ties to WikiLeaks, who also is under investigation.
"There were no real big surprises in the questions. They were detailed, complex, they were multi-part," Mr Giuliani said.
He would not say how many questions there were.
Mr Giuliani said in the statement that Mr Trump had provided "unprecedented cooperation" with the probe over the past year and a half.
He noted that more than 30 White House-related witnesses had been questioned and 1.4 million pages of material turned over before Mr Trump responded to the pre-election questions in writing.
He added that "much of what has been asked raised serious constitutional issues and was beyond the scope of a legitimate inquiry".
Mr Giuliani later told Reuters there was "very little hope" Mr Trump would sit for an interview with the Special Counsel.
Mr Trump's lawyers have been negotiating with Mr Mueller's prosecutors since last year over whether he would sit for an interview. - REUTERS
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