Petr Aven's Outreach Efforts to the Transition Team

¶In December 2016, weeks after the one-on-one meeting with Putin described in Volume I, Section IV.B.1.b, supra, Petr Aven attended what he described as a separate "all-hands" oligarch meeting between Putin and Russia's most prominent businessmen.¹¹⁶⁷¹¹⁶⁷ Aven 8/2/18 302, at 7; [Redacted: (b) (3)] As in Aven's one-on-one meeting, a main topic of discussion at the oligarch meeting in December 2016 was the prospect of forthcoming U.S. economic sanctions.¹¹⁶⁸¹¹⁶⁸ [Redacted: (b) (3)]

¶After the December 2016 all-hands meeting, Aven tried to establish a connection to the Trump team. Aven instructed Richard Burt to make contact with the incoming Trump Administration. Burt was on the board of directors for LetterOne (L1), another company headed by Aven, and had done work for Alfa-Bank.¹¹⁶⁹¹¹⁶⁹ [Redacted: (b) (3)] Aven 8/2/18 302, at 6. Burt had previously served as U.S. ambassador to Germany and Assistant Secretary of State for European and Canadian Affairs, and one of his primary roles with Alfa-Bank and L1 was to facilitate introductions to business contacts in the United States and other Western countries.¹¹⁷⁰¹¹⁷⁰ [Redacted: (b) (3)] Aven 8/2/18 302, at 6; Burt 2/9/18 302, at 2.

¶While at a L1 board meeting held in Luxembourg in late December 2016, Aven pulled Burt aside and told him that he had spoken to someone high in the Russian government who expressed interest in establishing a communications channel between the Kremlin and the Trump Transition Team.¹¹⁷¹¹¹⁷¹ Burt 2/9/18 302, at 2; [Redacted: (b) (3)] Aven asked for Burt's help in contacting members of the Transition Team.¹¹⁷²¹¹⁷² [Redacted: (b) (3)] Although Burt had been responsible for helping Aven build connections in the past, Burt viewed Aven's request as unusual and outside the normal realm of his dealings with Aven.¹¹⁷³¹¹⁷³ Burt 2/9/18 302, at 4.

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¶Burt, who is a member of the board of CNI (discussed at Volume I, Section IV.A.4, supra),1174 decided to approach CNI president Dimitri Simes for help facilitating Aven's request, recalling that Simes had some relationship with Kushner.¹¹⁷⁵¹¹⁷⁵ Burt 2/9/18 302, at 3. At the time, Simes was lobbying the Trump Transition Team, on Burt's behalf, to appoint Burt U.S. ambassador to Russia.¹¹⁷⁶¹¹⁷⁶ Burt 2/9/18 302, at 3.

¶Burt contacted Simes by telephone and asked if he could arrange a meeting with Kushner to discuss setting up a high-level communications channel between Putin and the incoming Administration.¹¹⁷⁷¹¹⁷⁷ Burt 2/9/18 302, at 3; Simes 3/27/18 302, at 4. Simes told the Office that he declined and stated to Burt that setting up such a channel was not a good idea in light of the media attention surrounding Russian influence in the U.S. presidential election.¹¹⁷⁸¹¹⁷⁸ Burt 2/9/18 302, at 3; Simes 3/27/18 302, at 4. According to Simes, he understood that Burt was seeking a secret channel, and Simes did not want CNI to be seen as an intermediary between the Russian government and the incoming Administration.¹¹⁷⁹¹¹⁷⁹ Simes 3/27/18 302, at 5. Based on what Simes had read in the media, he stated that he already had concerns that Trump's business connections could be exploited by Russia, and Simes said that he did not want CNI to have any involvement or apparent involvement in facilitating any connection.¹¹⁸⁰¹¹⁸⁰ Simes 3/27/18 302, at 5.

¶In an email dated December 22, 2016, Burt recounted for Aven his conversation with Simes:

Through a trusted third party, I have reached out to the very influential person I mentioned in Luxembourg concerning Project A. There is an interest and an understanding for the need to establish such a channel. But the individual emphasized that at this moment, with so much intense interest in the Congress and the media over the question of cyber-hacking (and who ordered what), Project A was too explosive to discuss. The individual agreed to discuss it again after the New Year. I trust the individual's instincts on this.

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¶If this is unclear or you would like to discuss, don't hesitate to call.¹¹⁸¹¹¹⁸¹ 12/22/16 Email, Burt to Aven (7:23 p.m.).

¶According to Burt, the "very influential person" referenced in his email was Simes, and the reference to a "trusted third party" was a fabrication, as no such third party existed. "Project A" was a term that Burt created for Aven's effort to help establish a communications channel between Russia and the Trump team, which he used in light of the sensitivities surrounding what Aven was requesting, especially in light of the recent attention to Russia's influence in the U.S. presidential election.¹¹⁸²¹¹⁸² Burt 2/9/18 302, at 3. According to Burt, his report that there was "interest" in a communications channel reflected Simes's views, not necessarily those of the Transition Team, and in any event, Burt acknowledged that he added some "hype" to that sentence to make it sound like there was more interest from the Transition Team than may have actually existed.¹¹⁸³¹¹⁸³ Burt 2/9/18 302, at 3-4.

¶Aven replied to Burt's email on the same day, saying "Thank you. All clear."¹¹⁸⁴¹¹⁸⁴ 12/22/16 Email, Aven to Burt (4:58:22 p.m.). According to Aven, this statement indicated that he did not want the outreach to continue.¹¹⁸⁵¹¹⁸⁵ Aven 8/2/18 302, at 7. Burt spoke to Aven some time thereafter about his attempt to make contact with the Trump team, explaining to Aven that the current environment made it impossible, [Redacted: (b) (3)]

¶.¹¹⁸⁶¹¹⁸⁶ [Redacted: (b) (3)] Burt did not recall discussing Aven's request with Simes again, nor did he recall speaking to anyone else about the request.1187

¶In the first quarter of 2017, Aven met again with Putin and other Russian officials.1188 At that meeting, Putin asked about Aven's attempt to build relations with the Trump Administration,

and Aven recounted his lack of success.¹¹⁸⁹¹¹⁸⁹ [Redacted: (b) (3)] Aven 8/2/18 302, at 7. [Redacted: (b) (3)]

¶. Putin continued to inquire about Aven's efforts to connect to the Trump Administration in several subsequent quarterly meetings.1191

¶Aven also told Putin's chief of staff that he had been subpoenaed by the FBI.¹¹⁹²¹¹⁹² Aven 8/2/18 302, at 8. As part of that conversation, he reported that he had been asked by the FBI about whether he had worked to create a back channel between the Russian government and the Trump Administration.¹¹⁹³¹¹⁹³ Aven 8/2/18 302, at 8; [Redacted: (b) (3)]

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¶According to A ven, the official showed no emotion in response to this repo1i and did not appear to care. 1194

Carter Page Contact with Deputy Prime Minister Arkady Dvorkovich

¶In December 2016, more than two months after he was removed from the T111mp Campaign, fo1mer Campaign foreign policy advisor Caiier Pa e a ain visited Moscow in an attem t to ursue business o oiiunities.11 95

¶According to Konstantin Kilimnik, Paul Manafo1i' s associate, Page also gave some individuals in Russia the impression that he had maintained his connections to President-Elect T111mp. In a December 8, 2016 email intended for Manafo1i, Kilimnik wrote, "Caiier Page is in Moscow today, sending messages he is authorized to talk to Russia on behalf of DT on a range of issues of mutual interest, including Ukraine."¹¹⁹⁷¹¹⁹⁷ [Redacted: (b) (7)(A), (b) (7)(E)]

¶On December 9, 2016, Page went to dinner with NES employees Shlomo Weber and Andrej Krickovic.¹¹⁹⁸¹¹⁹⁸ Page 3/16/ 17 302, at 3; Page 3/30/ 17 302, at 8. Weber had contacted Dvorkovich to let him know that Page was in town and to invite him to stop by the dinner if he wished to do so, and Dvorkovich came to the restaurant for a few minutes to meet with Page.¹¹⁹⁹¹¹⁹⁹ Weber 7/28/ 17 302, at 4; Page 3/ 16/ 17 302, at 3; [Redacted: (b) (3)] Dvorkovich congratulated Page on Tnunp 's election and expressed interest in starting a dialogue between the United States and Russia.¹²⁰⁰¹²⁰⁰ Page 3/16/ 17 302, at 3; [Redacted: (b) (3)] Dvorkovich asked Page ifhe could facilitate connecting Dvorkovich with individuals involved in the transition to be in a discussion of future coo eration.¹²⁰¹¹²⁰¹ Page 3/16/ 17 302, at 3; [Redacted: (b) (3)]

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