Pressure on Trump administration grows as further details of Russia links emerge
Donald Trump's administration is facing calls for an investigation into the links between departed national security adviser Michael Flynn and the Kremlin, amid reports of alleged contacts between the President's election campaign and members of the Russian government.
A statement released from the White House confirmed that Trump knew for weeks before his resignation that Flynn had misled about his contacts with Russia, but did not immediately reconsider his position.
The President was informed in January that Flynn was not entirely forthcoming to VP Mike Pence about his relationship with the Russian ambassador to the US, according to press secretary Sean Spicer.
Several leading Democrats in Washington, as well as a handful of senior Republicans, have called for an investigation into Flynn's contact with the Russian administration. Flynn quit over claims that he discussed US sanctions on Russia before Trump took over the Oval Office.
Further revelations emerged late on Tuesday as the New York Times reported that a group of campaign aides during Trump's successful election campaign had had repeated contact with Russian officials.
Citing four current and former US intelligence officials, the NYT said that there had been contact between the campaign and senior Russian intelligence for up to a year before the November election.
The sources did add that there was no evidence as of yet that there was collusion between the Kremlin and Trump's team to attempt to influence the election.
Meanwhile, Russia has responded unequivocally to comments from President Trump in which he said he expects control of Crimea to be returned to Ukraine.
"We don't give back our own territory. Crimea is territory belonging to the Russian Federation," said Maria Zakharova, a spokesperson for the Russian Foreign Ministry.
Russia annexed the region in 2014, leading to the placement of sanctions against its government from the US and the European Union.