Russian Once Tied to Trump Aide Seeks Immunity to Cooperate With Congress -
By BARRY MEIER and JESSE DRUCKERMAY 26, 2017
Oleg V. Deripaska, a Russian oligarch once close to President Trump’s former campaign manager, has offered to cooperate with congressional committees investigating Russian meddling in the 2016 election,
but lawmakers are unwilling to accept his conditions, according to congressional officials.
The State Department has refused to issue him a business visa because of concerns over allegations
that he was connected to organized crime, according to a former United States government official, which Mr. Deripaska has denied.
Mr. Deripaska came to the United States eight times between 2011
and 2014 with government permission as a Russian diplomat, according to affidavits he gave in a little-noticed lawsuit in a Manhattan court.
Mr. Deripaska, an aluminum magnate who is a member of the inner circle of the Russian president, Vladimir V. Putin, recently offered to cooperate with congressional intelligence committees in exchange for a grant of full immunity, according to three congressional officials, speaking on condition of anonymity
because they were not authorized to discuss the issue publicly.
Last month, a New York State Supreme Court justice rejected Mr. Gliklad’s argument that the Manhattan court had jurisdiction over Mr. Deripaska.
He sought to get a visa in 2015 to testify in the Manhattan court case, according to court filings, but the State Department refused to issue him one
But speaking generally, he said diplomats coming to the United States received a special
visa while foreigners doing business in this country needed a business visa.