AFP
Washington
US President Donald Trump denied on Sunday being briefed on intelligence that reportedly showed Russia had offered bounties to Taliban-linked militants for killing US soldiers in Afghanistan.
The report by the New York Times sparked renewed questions about Trump’s reluctance to confront Russia over behaviour that, if accurate, would represent a serious national security challenge.
In a pair of early-morning tweets, Trump angrily slammed the report as "probably just another phony Times hit job, just like their failed Russia Hoax.”
"Nobody briefed or told me, @VP Pence, or Chief of Staff @MarkMeadows about the so-called attacks on our troops in Afghanistan by Russians, as reported through an ‘anonymous source’ by the Fake News @nytimes,” he wrote.
"Everybody is denying it & there have not been many attacks on us....”
"Nobody’s been tougher on Russia than the Trump Administration.”
The Times, citing anonymous officials, said Trump was briefed on the US intelligence findings in March, but has not decided how to respond.
According to the report, US intelligence had concluded that a Russian military intelligence unit offered rewards to Taliban-linked militants to kill troops of the US-led coalition in Afghanistan.