Former CIA director knew Russia wanted to interfere in US election

Former CIA director John Brennan said the investigation into possible contacts between Russians and people in Donald Trump's campaign was "well-founded".

Former CIA Director John Brennan testifies before the US House Intelligence Committee. Photo: AFP

Speaking before the US House Intelligence Committee, according to the BBC, Mr. Brennan said that he was aware of intelligence showing links between Russian officials and "American individuals associated with Mr. Trump's campaign."

The former director of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) also informed that Russia "deeply interfered" in the November 2016 election in the US and was "very aggressive".

However, Mr Brennan said he did not know whether Mr Trump's people had been working behind the scenes with Moscow.

"I have learned of intelligence that reveals contacts and interactions between Russian officials and American individuals involved in the Trump campaign. I am concerned about this because of Russia's efforts to bribe such individuals," Mr. Brennan said.

“That makes me wonder whether Russia has been able to achieve cooperation with these individuals,” Mr. Brennan said.

Meanwhile, the Washington administration has maintained that "there is still no evidence of collusion between Mr. Trump's campaign and Russia."

The House inquiry is one of two congressional investigations into allegations that Russian hackers tried to interfere in the US presidential election to boost Mr Trump's popularity and allegations that some members of Mr Trump's campaign helped the Kremlin.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is also conducting its own investigation into the allegations.

Mr Brennan further acknowledged that he was leaving his post with many unanswered questions regarding Russia's influence on the US presidential election.

Therefore, he said that the FBI investigation is "certainly well-founded and these issues need to be carefully considered."

The former CIA director also added that he had warned his Russian counterpart, FSB director Alexander Bortnikov, by phone in August 2016 not to interfere in the US election.

According to Mr. Brennan, Mr. Bortnikov has twice denied interfering and promised to bring the issue to Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Meanwhile, the Senate Intelligence Committee, according to Reuters, has announced plans to issue two new subpoenas to businesses owned by Mr. Trump's former national security adviser, Mr. Michael Flynn.

Mr. Flynn had previously invoked the Fifth Amendment and refused to hand over Russia-related documents under a Senate subpoena.

According to Tuoi Tre