Report: Trump Jr. Kept in Touch With Kremlin-Connected Agalarov During Transition

Donald Trump Jr. reportedly stayed in touch with the family of the Russian oligarch behind the controversial Trump Tower meeting for weeks after his father was elected president. According to sources cited by BuzzFeed News, Trump Jr. exchanged a “series of text messages” with Emin Agalarov, the Azeri-Russian pop singer son of Aras Agalarov, until at least mid-December 2016. The older Agalarov was the driving force behind the June 2016 Trump Tower meeting, a key focal point of the Russia investigation that saw Trump’s top aides meet with a Russian lawyer who has now admitted to being an “informant” for the Kremlin. Despite the Trumps downplaying the significance of their ties to the Kremlin-linked Agalarov family, the interactions described by Buzzfeed appear to suggest the families are much closer than previously thought. The exchanges reportedly went beyond Trump Jr. interacting with the younger Agalarov. Shortly after the Trump Tower meeting, Aras Agalarov sent Trump an “expensive painting” for his birthday, prompting a gushing thank-you note from Trump, according to the report.