MOSCOW, August 5. /TASS/. Former Russian Ambassador to the US Sergey Kislyak’s contacts with Donald Trump's former national security adviser Michael Flynn had nothing but the issues crucial for cooperation between the two countries, including the war on terror, Kislyak said in a televised interview with Rossiay’24 channel on Saturday.
US President Donald Trump appointed Retired Lt Gen Michael Flynn as a security adviser, Flynn assumed this position on 20 January 2017, but on February 13 he had to resign. Media reports said Flynn either misinformed US Vice President Michael Pence on his contacts with Russia’s Ambassador in Washington Sergei Kislyak in December 2016 or failed to present comprehensive information about the talks.
After Flynn’s resignation, the US media reported that he had worked as a foreign agent and represented the interests of Turkey.
"We talked about very simple things. There are a few themes important for cooperation of Russia and the United States. First of all, terrorism, and it was one of the topics we were discussing," Kislyak said. "The communication was utterly correct, calm and absolutely transparent. There were no secrets, at least on our part."
Reports that an ambassador cannot communicate with the newly elected administration’s officials sound "like a caricature" and accusations of espionage are "shameful for such country as America," he added.
"Any diplomat, whether Russian or not, works so as to understand better the policy of the country he is working in, so as to work out better what the new administration is coming with, so as to realize how and where to develop cooperation if possible," he emphasized. "It is the work that is done by all my counterparts, not just by Russian diplomats. Everything is absolute."
Answering the presenter’s question about a hypothetical possibility to give testimony at the US Congress about Russia’s alleged interference in the US presidential election, Kislyak said: "Of course not. I would testify or appear only before the Russian parliament.".