Donald Trump son-in-law Jared Kushner 'being investigated by FBI as part of Russia probe'

Donald Trump’s son-in-law and senior adviser Jared Kushner is reportedly being investigated by the FBI as part of its probe into Russia’s alleged meddling in the US presidential election.

The NBC network quoted US officials as saying that Ivanka Trump’s 36-year-old husband, who was with the president when he met the Pope in Rome this week, was facing FBI scrutiny.

It is the first time a member of the administration has been identified as a “target” in the investigation led by special counsel Robert Mueller, a former FBI director.

Agents reportedly believe that Mr Kushner’s contact with some Russian officials is relevant to their inquiries, although there is no suggestion they suspect him of any wrongdoing.

They are focusing on two meetings in December: the first with the Russian ambassador Sergey Kislyak, in New York; the other with Sergey Gorkov, the head of Vnesheconombank, Russia’s largest state-owned commercial bank.

The bank has been the subject of US sanctions imposed over Russia’s annexation of Crimea in 2014 and its support for separatists in Ukraine.

According to NBC News, Mr Gorkov studied at the training school for the FSB, one of Russia’s intelligence services.

The White House and the FBI declined to comment on the reports.

Mr Kushner’s lawyer, Jamie Gorelick, said in a statement that the White House adviser “previously volunteered to share with Congress what he knows about these meetings. He will do the same if he is contacted in connection with any other inquiry.”

A former senior intelligence official told the Washington Post that FBI agents were also investigating earlier exchanges between Trump associates and the Russians, including at an event at the Mayflower Hotel in Washington in April last year which was attended by both Mr Kushner and Mr Kislyak, as well as Trump adviser Jeff Sessions, who is now US attorney general.

In a speech at the event, Mr Trump promised to seek better relations with Russia, although it is not known whether Mr Kushner and Mr Kislyak had any interaction at the time.

Mr Kushner — whose family’s property fortune is said to be worth about £1.5 billion — did not initially mention the December meetings on his White House security clearance forms, but later admitted the error.

Both meetings took place during the presidential transition, when Mr Kushner became known as a facilitator for foreign governments looking to make contacts in the new administration.

President Trump has denied any collusion with the Russians. One-time Trump campaign foreign policy adviser Carter Page has said he will testify before a House intelligence panel investigating alleged Russia links.