An email chain released by President Donald Trump's eldest son shows he was aware the Russian government wanted to give him information incriminating Democratic rival Hillary Clinton.
The email chain, tweeted on Tuesday, was between Donald Trump Jr and Rob Goldstone, an intermediary who helped to arrange the eventual meeting with the lawyer.
Here's my statement and the full email chain pic.twitter.com/x050r5n5LQ
— Donald Trump Jr. (@DonaldJTrumpJr) July 11, 2017
Here is page 4 (which did not post due to space constraints). pic.twitter.com/z1Xi4nr2gq
— Donald Trump Jr. (@DonaldJTrumpJr) July 11, 2017
"The Crown prosecutor of Russia ... offered to provide the Trump campaign with some official documents and information that would incriminate Hillary and her dealings with Russia and would be very useful to your father," said the June 3, 2016, email to Donald Trump Jr from publicist Rob Goldstone.
"This is obviously very high level and sensitive information but is part of Russia and its government's support for Mr. Trump," according to the email posted by Trump Jr on Twitter.
"If it's what you say I love it," Trump Jr replied in part.
The emails do not at first glance appear to provide evidence of illegal activity, and Trump Jr has said a meeting he later had with a Russian lawyer arranged via Goldstone primarily involved discussion of US sanctions.
However, Goldstone's statement that the promise of incriminating information from Russia on Democratic presidential candidate Clinton provides new ammunition for federal and congressional investigators who are probing Russia's alleged interference in the 2016 US presidential campaign in which Trump beat Clinton.
The US Senate's intelligence committee is seeking documents from Trump Jr and intends to call on him to testify before lawmakers, a Senate source told Reuters.
The source said there is no date set yet to hear testimony and that the committee is in the process of sending Trump Jr its request for information.
The email exchange includes at least one error. Russia does not have a "crown prosecutor" but rather a prosecutor general. A spokesman for the prosecutor general declined to comment immediately.
Legal experts are divided on whether Trump Jr's participation in the meeting with the Russian lawyer could lead to criminal liability.
Collusion in and of itself is not a crime. But if the younger Trump conspired or aided and abetted a criminal action, such as hacking into American computer networks, that could be grounds for criminal charges. Several lawyers also said the meeting could run afoul of federal election laws barring campaigns from accepting gifts or things of value from foreign nationals.
Moscow has denied any interference, and Trump says his campaign did not collude with Russia.
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