'Strange' details in closed meeting between President Trump and Russian Foreign Minister

A closed-door meeting with Russia's top diplomat was the only event on US President Donald Trump's agenda yesterday, a day after he fired the FBI Director. It took place at the White House but the US media were "banned" to make way for Russian media.

US President Donald Trump (left) shakes hands with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov during a closed-door meeting at the White House on May 10. Photo: TASS

American reporters are "banned", Russian reporters are given special privileges

Washington PostOn May 10, US President Donald Trump held a closed-door meeting with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and Russian Ambassador Sergei Kislyak in the Oval Office of the White House. This was the highest-level contact between the Trump administration and the administration of Russian President Vladimir Putin since Trump took office earlier this year.

The meeting took place in a closed session, all domestic and international reporters were banned from attending the event except for reporters from Russia's TASS news agency.

Washington PostThe only reporter with this privilege is Andrei Sitov, the chief representative ofTASSin Washington. Andrei Sitov accompanied Foreign Minister Lavrov to events in Washington and was the sole author of photos of the closed-door meeting between Mr. Trump and Mr. Lavrov.

Positive Talks

Speaking at a press conference after his talks with President Trump, Russian Foreign Minister Lavrov said: "First, we discussed cooperation between the two countries in the international arena. The two sides reaffirmed that, despite difficulties and challenges, the two sides can and must cooperate to solve key issues on the international agenda." The head of Russian diplomacy added that the US and Russia will continue to cooperate on many issues, including the war in Syria and Ukraine.

Meanwhile, Mr. Lavrov revealed that sanctions against Russia were not mentioned in the meeting. "We did not discuss sanctions. That is not our problem. That is a unilateral action against us," Mr. Lavrov said.

For his part, President Trump described the meeting with the Russian Foreign Minister as “very good”. When asked if the firing of FBI Director James Comey affected the meeting, Mr. Trump affirmed: “Not at all”.

Earlier, as soon as Russian Foreign Minister Lavrov arrived in Washington and held talks with his US counterpart Rex Tillerson, an American reporter asked him whether Mr. Comey’s case would affect the visit. Mr. Lavrov replied: “He was fired? Are you kidding?”

The top Russian diplomat's meeting at the White House took place just one day after President Donald Trump abruptly fired FBI Director James Comey, citing Comey's handling of the investigation into former Secretary of State and presidential candidate Hillary Clinton's use of private email.

According to Dan Tri