US lawyer calls for charges against Manafort over Ukraine investigation

UNITED STATES: US lawyer Benjamin M. Ginsberg said in a letter to the court in the Eastern District of Florida that the special counsel overseeing the Russia investigation has been investigating Mr. Manafort since 2016. 

The letter was published on the internet Monday. 

Ginsberg’s letter also accused Mr. Mueller of seeking to obstruct justice, an allegation that Mr. Trump has repeatedly denied. 

“This special counsel has been in constant communication with Mr. Putin, has engaged in surveillance of the President and has made clear to Mr. Obama that Mr, Manafort is his personal attorney,” Ginsberg wrote. 

Mr. Trump and the White House have denied any obstruction of justice by the special prosecutor. 

President Trump leaves the White Houses Oval Office for a meeting with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on April 25, 2021, in Washington. 

 Mr Trump has frequently accused Mr Mueller of having a bias against him and has threatened to fire him if he continues to investigate him. 

Trump lawyer says Mueller investigation ‘unfair’Trump lawyer Michael Cohen said in an interview that Mueller’s probe is “unfair and wrong” and “not consistent with the norms of justice.” 

“Mr. Mueller is going to try to have his agenda pursued,” Cohen said. 

“[Mr. Putin] has been involved in a number of things over the last six years, and he’s been very active in trying to undermine Mr. Comey, to try and hurt him and his relationship with the FBI.” 

Mr Cohen told the BBC that he does not believe Mr Trump has any direct knowledge of the alleged Russia-Trump collusion. 

Cohen said Mr Trump is a “pretty intelligent person” who would not be able to understand the scope of the investigation. 

Kushner: Russia collusion ‘not credible’Cohen and Cohen both served as top White House officials during the last five years of Mr Trump’s administration. 

At the time, the special prosecutors office was looking into the Trump campaign’s alleged ties to Russia and whether the Trump administration conspired with Russia during the election. 

In his letter to Ginsberg, Cohen accused the special investigators of seeking a “scoop” on Mr Trump. 

“‘Scoop’ is a way of saying that we’ve got something you want to keep quiet and keep your agenda away from the president, that’s what we’re doing,” Cohen told The Associated Press. 

‘We can’t wait to get started’Cohens letter also noted that the Russian investigation was “not the only, or even the most important, inquiry that the Special Counsel has been engaged in.”

“As far as I know, there is no other investigation that has focused on the President or his inner circle and the issues of Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election, obstruction of Congress, collusion with foreign powers, and any other issues that the White Senate is pursuing,” Cohen wrote.

The White House said in March that it had no knowledge of any conversations between Mr Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin. 

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