Ex-US NSA's lawyers not sharing information with Trump team

Former US National Security Adviser Michael Flynn's lawyers have told other defence lawyers in the ongoing Russia probe, including President Donald Trump's legal team, that they were no longer able to share information, the media reported.

An informed source told CNN on Thursday that the decision to cease informal information-sharing could be an indication Flynn was preparing to plead guilty in Special Counsel Robert Mueller's investigation into alleged Russian collusion in the 2016 presidential election.

While Flynn's lawyers had previously shared information with Trump's team, the change does not necessarily indicate that Flynn is cooperating with Mueller.

Jay Sekulow, a member of Trump's legal team, said that the decision to no longer share information "is not entirely unexpected" and should not be seen as an indication of cooperation.

"No one should draw the conclusion that this means anything about General Flynn cooperating against the President," CNN quoted Sekulow as saying.

Lawyers can pull out of information-sharing arrangements for a variety of reasons, including concerns of potential conflicts of interest that may arise at a later date.

Information-sharing may also be abandoned, for example, when a lawyer is attempting to negotiate with prosecutors, but those negotiations aren't always successful.

Flynn's lawyers declined to comment.

Meanwhile, former Trump campaign officials Paul Manafort and Rick Gates already face charges relating to their undisclosed foreign lobbying for Ukraine.

They were indicted by Mueller's grand jury last month. Both have pleaded not guilty.

--IANS

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