Michael Flynn Had a Plan to Work With Russias Military. It Wasnt Exactly Legal.
The former national security adviser had a long-standing desire to get closer to the Russians. One newly revealed step in the plan may have stepped beyond the bounds of the law.
SPENCER ACKERMAN
06.07.17 12:00 AM ET
Donald Trump’s first national security adviser pushed so hard for the Pentagon to cooperate with the Russian military that his initiative would likely have broken the law if it had ever been enacted.
Four current and former Pentagon officials told The Daily Beast that during Michael Flynn’s brief White House tenure, the retired general advocated for the expansion of a relatively narrow military communications channel—one meant to keep U.S. and Russian pilots safe from one another—to see if the two nations could jointly fight the so-called Islamic State.
The initiative never went anywhere, in part because of opposition from the Pentagon and from U.S. Central Command; a legal prohibition set by Congress; and, ultimately, Flynn’s firing.
Inside the Pentagon, “there was a lot of fear that we’d move to outright cooperation with Russia through this channel,” according to a former senior defense official.
Whatever prospects it may have had died after Defense Secretary James Mattis made clear that he would not sign any required authorization to green-light cooperation, according to two knowledgeable former senior defense officials.
more
http://www.thedailybeast.com/michael-flynn-had-a-plan-to-work-with-russias-military-it-wasnt-exactly-legal
